The Firebird
by A Charmed Vampire
Summary: In the kingdom of Arendelle, they have a rumor. The people say that often at sunrise, if you look hard enough you can see a bird, seemingly made of fire, fly among the mountains. Queen Elsa dismisses the rumor almost immediately, but what if it wasn't a rumor? What if she fell in love with this Firebird. F/F. Elsa/OC. Somewhat AU. Somewhat OOC Elsa.
1. In the Beginning

**The Firebird**

**Chapter 1**

**Pairing: Elsa/OC**

**Rating: T for Language and Content**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except the OC and the partial AU. Everything else belongs to their respective owners.**

* * *

In Arendelle it was widely known that the kingdom had a lot of magic within its borders. The queen herself even possessed magic. And her subjects were well aware of this. In fact, Queen Elsa had sent the kingdom into an eternal winter only a year prior. Her subjects had feared her then. But once it was revealed that she was a threat to anyone, they willingly accepted her as their Queen with open arms.

Once the attempt at the throne made by now ex Prince Hans of the Southern Isles had been revealed, the kingdom revered their Queen and Princess, along with the Royal Ice Master and Deliver. They had all been led to believe that magic was evil, and that a sorceress should not have held the throne. But over the past year of Elsa's reign, she had proved that she deserved her position. She heard every plea of her subjects and addressed them accordingly. She protected the kingdom and her people well, defending them from any threats. And she was always looking out for the welfare of the kingdom.

Well, that was until now. Now that Anna and Kristoff were married, there was pressure for Elsa to marry as well, to ensure a successor to the throne. Elsa didn't want to marry; at least not yet. She was very reluctant to choose a husband, although she had received many offers from neighboring kingdoms. Arendelle was by no means a poor or small kingdom. Any royal would love to have it under their flags. However, Elsa was having none of it.

"But You Majesty! I must insist, you have to choose a husband soon. Even Princess Anna has been married, although I can't say it's exactly proper who she married." Her advisor Mortis Kilen stated. Out of all her advisors, he was the most insistent. He was always trying to pressure Elsa into accepting one of the offers she had been given.

"Sir Kilen, while I appreciate the advice, I must stop you there. I'm quite aware that I'm of marrying age, however until the right young man comes along, I have no intention of marrying." Kilen huffed, then sighed and bowed to the Queen.

"As you wish, Your Majesty." And with that he left Elsa's study.

She was scared really. She knew that her people didn't see her powers as a curse anymore. Hell, even Elsa herself was starting to see them less as a curse and more as a gift these days. Everlasting ice was something that was rare to find, and Elsa could create it on a whim. It had strengthened a lot of Arendelle's trading partnerships with kingdoms such as Corona and Ajana. But she didn't want her child to have to bear her powers. It was enough to be a child of royalty, nevermind being burdened with power over ice. She didn't want her child to have the same hardships she did.

Elsa leaned back in her chair, pinching the bridge of her nose. Needless to say she was a little stressed out. On top of this marrying business her advisors were relentless with, she also needed to make a trip to Ajana, to discuss some additions to their trade agreement. It Ajana wasn't too far, only a three days ride, but it wasn't the length of time that stressed her out. It was that Ajana's prince was relentless in his pursuit of Elsa, and didn't seem to take no for an answer.

The boy was nice enough, but not really Elsa's type. He was somewhat of a womanizer, something that wasn't uncommon for the time, however it was distasteful for Elsa. He also had quite the overbearing as well as arrogant attitude. Something that Elsa also found quite irritating. Those character traits alone made him less than desirable in Elsa's eyes. However she needed to maintain good connections with Ajana. They were a valuable trading asset to the kingdom, so Elsa would have to put up with the prince's advances for the duration of her stay. 'A small price to pay for the welfare of my kingdom,' she thought to herself.

Elsa had been awake through the night, making last minute arrangements and adjustments to her proposed trade agreement. Through the window to her study, she saw the sun peaking out from the horizon. Elsa had always enjoyed watching the sun rise since her little.. mishap with her powers. She didn't really know why, but it always calmed her.

Her thoughts wandered over to a rumor she had heard circulating through the kingdom. Normally she didn't bother with such gossip, but this one was actually intriguing, although Elsa herself didn't really believe it to be true. This rumor had to do with an elusive bird that would sometimes be reported as flying over the mountains. However, what made this bird different was that it was bright orange, with a red plume on it's head. Some even said they thought it was made of fire. The Firebird, her people called it. Elsa personally had never seen it and didn't really believe it existed. There were plenty of birds in Arendelle in the spring and summer months, that it could easily just be an exceptionally colorful bird.

It wasn't that Elsa didn't believe in magical creatures or anything; far from it actually. She had met trolls for gods sake. She was just skeptical that a magical bird with a plume of fire would just settle around Arendelle.

As the sun rose, Elsa sighed. It was time to ready herself for her trip. She left to her chambers, making sure to remind Kai to keep an eye on Anna and Kristoff while she was gone. It wasn't that she didn't trust them, but Anna was known to get into trouble quite often.

She met Anna and Kristoff at the gates of the castle. Hugging her sister tightly, Anna whispered to her, "You'll promise me you'll be safe, right Elsa?" Elsa chuckled, her sister was always the worrier. But it was sweet, she waited so long to have a relationship with Anna again.

"I promise you Anna, I'll come back unharmed." Anna broke the hug and stepped back from her sister. Kristoff also pulled Elsa into a hug.

"Be careful you hear? The road to Ajana can be pretty rough sometimes." Elsa nodded.

"I'll be careful Kristoff. Just promise me to look after Fiestypants here." She casually gestured at Anna, who gasped and swatted Elsa's shoulder, leaving the other two to laugh at her. Anna just pouted as Elsa stepped into the carriage. Waving goodbye to her sister and Kristoff, she mentally prepared herself for the visit to Ajana.

* * *

Jaymen was taking her early morning flight. It had become a habit ever since she had arrived in Arendelle. When traveling with Bella, she learned that at least weekly, if not daily, flights were important to keeping her powers in check. Her flights gave her time to let loose and be herself. She didn't need to worry about anything or anyone. She could just be free.

Today was just such a day. She was flying over the treetops near Arendelle, observing the scenery below her. Ever since she had come to Arendelle about two years ago, she always admired the beauty of the landscape. Even when Queen Elsa had frozen the land, it was still beautiful, just in a different way. And Jaymen had never been bothered by the cold. There were few things in the world that could freeze her inner fire; Elsa's ice not being one of them.

Jaymen had sympathized with what Elsa had been going through just a year ago. She had lost control of her powers; something Jaymen was quite familiar with. However, with her powers, she was little more.. destructive. Fire was not something to be underestimated. It could be beautiful in the right hands, but let it out of your control and it would consume everything in its path. Jaymen had learned that the hard way. The memories still burned into her mind, scaring her inner thoughts. She could never forget that part of her life.

But she had worked past that and she was now in full control of her powers. And as she flew over the mountains, Jaymen let out a shrill cry and lit her entire body on fire. Her feathers turning to flame, the plume on her head igniting a bright red color. Her eyes totally white, signifying her hot inner fire. She always loved letting loose her firebird. It was a free creature; she couldn't and didn't want to hold it back. She let it loose as much as was possible, although she was certain she had been spotted by a few townspeople before. She didn't think too much of it. This kingdom knew magic, there was nothing to fear from these humans.

As the sun rose, Jaymen continued her flight, passing over the mountain trails and passes. No one was traveling them at the moment, although Jaymen had heard that the Queen would be returning from her trip to Ajana soon. Little did Elsa know but Jaymen had been watching her since the beginning. She often flew over the ice castle Elsa had created during her self imposed exile; making sure the girl was alright. And when Anna had saved Elsa from Hans, she had been there. Of course watching from a distance, but she watched.

She couldn't help but feel a little responsible for the poor girl. She had no mentor, no teacher to guide her through the mastery of her powers. Jaymen probably would have offered, but their powers were just too different. Fire and ice didn't exactly mix very well. Ironic though she supposed, since she could only live for prolonged periods of time in cold climates. Hence settling on Arendelle.

Jaymen noticed the sun had fully risen and was hanging in the sky. She sighed and decided to touch down. She hated that she had to stop, but no matter how accepting these humans were, if they were to ever catch wind that she was the Firebird, they wouldn't leave her alone. And Jaymen liked her privacy and solidarity. She was the type to watch and observe from a distance, intervening only when absolutely necessary. As her talons touched the ground, Jaymen transformed back to her human form. Going over to a nearby stream, she washed her face in the cold waters and inspected her appearance.

Her piercing yellow eyes made her stand out from normal humans. Something that made her typically stay away from most human settlements. She resided in a small cave at the foot of the North Mountain, away from humans, but close enough to where she could keep an eye on the young Queen. But other than her eye color, nothing about her was really out of the ordinary. She had long, dark brown hair, with a single reddish-orange streak running down a part of her. Quite similar to Princess Anna's white streak. Her skin lightly tanned, which in these parts would just signify her as a common peasant, which suited her just fine.

Suddenly her ears perked up. She heard the sound of metal hitting metal, swords clashing together. And screams of death. At first Jaymen just thought it was just some bandits robbing a traveling merchant. She didn't really intervene in such matters, as they were hardly her business. However a thought passed through her mind and struck her with fear. Queen Elsa was supposed to returning this morning. She quickly grabbed her bow which has transformed like her clothes when she returned to human form and sprinted towards the sound of the fighting.

* * *

Elsa's trip had gone well. The king of Ajana had agreed to the terms, something that was very beneficial for both kingdoms. With this she quickly finished her business in Ajana and proceeded to take her leave. The prince of the kingdom was like she expected. Relentless. He constantly pestered her during her stay, constantly inviting her to dine with him, walk with him, or just generally do anything with him. She kept rejecting his advances, but that only made him try harder. She was glad to be leaving the kingdom.

Back on the road, Elsa sighed. When she returned to Arendelle she had stacks of paperwork to complete; and her sister would probably insist on 'making up for lost time,' as she did every time Elsa took a trip. And doing so usually involved mischief making and at least three types of chocolate. Elsa truly loved her sister though and wouldn't trade her for the world. She was the last of her family and took great care to protect her little sister.

Elsa heard a commotion from outside her carriage, but didn't think anything of it right away. It wasn't until the Captain of the Guard, Kaylor yelled, "My queen, we're under attack!" She immediately bolted out of her carriage to assist her guard. Kaylor strongly objected to this. "I cannot allow you to fight Your Highness. With all due respect I must insist… Arg." An arrow pierced Kaylor's chest and he fell back onto the ground. Her eyes widen in horror as the guardsmen surrounding her were taken down as well.

She was quickly surrounded by armed assassins. She attempted to use her powers to defend herself, conjuring a wall of ice as a few arrows are shot in her direction. She immediately shot a sharp icicle in the general direction of the arrows. From the cry of pain, she assumed she had hit something. She kept at this for a few minutes, managing to kill a few of her attackers. However it was quickly becoming too much. Elsa wasn't used to using her powers for combat, and it was taking a toll on her. She realized her couldn't sustain it.

She tried to run for it. She was getting a lead on her attackers, when her foot was caught on a tree root and she felt to the ground. The assassins quickly advanced on her, one of them nocking an arrow at her. "Greeting from the Southern Isles, Hans sends his regards. Any last words,_ Your Majesty_?" Elsa closed her eyes, shielding her face. But instead of an arrow piercing her skin, her attacker let out a cry of surprise and pain. Her eyes shoot open and she sees her attacker dead on the ground in front of her, an arrow sticking out of his forehead. The remaining assassins attempt to find their attacker, while also keeping Elsa on the ground. Instead, arrow after arrow flew through the air. Each hitting their mark in most of the assassins before the remaining two wisely scampered away.

Elsa sat up, not really believing what had just happened. The area where she was, was now covered with dead assassins. Out of nowhere, a hand appeared in front of her. She looked up to see a young female with piercing yellow eyes offering it. She gratefully took it and the girl pulled her to her feet.

"Are you okay, Your Majesty? The girl inquired. Elsa nodded, not trusting her voice. The girl looks her up and down, checking for wounds. Elsa finally found her voice.

"You have my thanks.. for saving me. If I might inquire as to who you are?" The female looked at her feet and shook her head.

"I'm nobody Your Majesty. Just a poor peasant wandering these parts." Elsa wasn't entirely convinced.

"That can't be! Someone of your skill with a bow must be of upper class." Although noting the girl's skin tone, it was entirely possible for her to be just a common peasant. Not that it mattered to Elsa, this girl had saved her life.

"I'm afraid not, Your Majesty. Just a girl who's naturally good with a bow." She bowed to Elsa. "And I'm afraid I'm going to take my leave, Your Majesty. I'm sure a caravan of some sort will be along soon to take you to Arendelle. I'd stay with you, but I've already overstayed my welcome." Elsa grabbed the girl's arm as she turned.

"Wait, you can't just leave me here!" The girl sighed and wrenched her arm out of Elsa's grip.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty. It's for the best. Although, we'll most likely meet again, in time." And the girl sprinted back into the forest. Elsa contemplated following after her, but she'd probably just lost. Looking at her surroundings with disgust, she tried to return to her carriage. Luck seemed to be favoring her today, because she did manage to find it and when she did a passing merchant was inspecting it.

When he noticed the Elsa he immediately fell to his knees in front of the Queen. "Your Majesty! Are you alright? I was just on my way to Arendelle to sell my goods when I found this carriage, which I assume belongs to you?" Elsa nodded.

"Rise, good sir. And you are correct, my carriage was ambushed by assassins. They managed to kill my guards, however they were unable to complete their task to kill me. I'd be grateful if you could provide me a ride back to Arendelle." The merchant nodded.

"Of course, Your Majesty. It would be an honor." He gestured to his horse drawn cart. Elsa climbed on, as did the merchant. The kingdom was thankfully not far away and it was still before nightfall when Elsa arrived back to the castle. Thanking the merchant and offering him a few gold coins as compensation for his services. The merchant gratefully accepted and bowed to the Queen.

Elsa returned to her study after greeting Anna and Kristoff, promising them full details tomorrow. For now Elsa was eager to write down the events from today. It wasn't every day when a yellow eyed stranger saves a queen from attacking bandits. Elsa wanted to commit this is memory. Little did she know, this was far from the last time she would see the strange yellow eyed girl.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, so new story! Sorry for the insanely long author's note, but I always write long ones when starting a new story.**

**I've been really wanting to write a Frozen FanFic lately. I had been having problems picking a pairing, because I don't really like writing hetero couples. I have nothing against them of course, I just don't like writing them. And the only F/F pairing is Elsanna, which I have no problem with either really. But I didn't really want to write that for my first Frozen FanFic. **

**Then it occurred to me that I had created a female OC for **_**The Life We Live,**_** a Bella/Leah Twilight FanFic for those of you unfamiliar with my work. I figured this would be a great opportunity to create an intricate backstory to her before I incorporate her into my Twilight story. So I just went for it. Spur of the moment, if you will. **

**For those of your curious, this is set a year after the events in **_**Frozen, **_**which you probably have figured out. Elsa is probably going to be a little OOC in terms of her insecurity, but it shouldn't be too pronounced. This is also sort of set in an AU I created as well. And you'll find out more details as I continue this story. My faceclaim for my OC is Nikki Reed, obviously not Twilight rendition though.**

**And for those of you familiar with my work, trust me. I have this one all outlined out and everything. I know what I'm going to write and I'm not just blindly writing like I usually do. I have a plan this time! In fact, you should have seen me last night writing out my outline. I got so caught up in it, I spent a good few hours on it without noticing. **

**Anyways, I don't know how long this story will be. I'm aiming for eight to ten chapters with the initial storyline. I actually have a sequel storyline written out as well, but I don't know if I'll write a completely separate story, or just tack it on this one. We'll see I guess. **

**I hope you guys enjoyed the concept for this story! It's something new I'm experimenting with, since I've never really written an OC as a main character. Nor written a story with ties to another story I'm writing. And I'm also un-beta'd so keep that in mind. Any spelling or grammar mistakes are my own. Anyways, leave reviews as you see fit. Praise or criticism, either is great. Also just another little thing, I'm not the more versed in **_**Frozen**_** lore or whatever, so if I get some details of the story wrong, I apologize right now. I try to research before I write, but sometimes I still get things wrong. Oh well. Hope you enjoyed.**

**A Charmed Vampire**


	2. Months Later

**The Firebird**

**Chapter 2**

**Pairing: Elsa/OC**

**Rating: T for Language and Content**

* * *

Months. It had been months since Elsa had seen the strange yellow eyed girl. She didn't know why she was so obsessed with her. She didn't know if it was exactly normal to be obsessed with a single person. But to be fair, the girl had saved her life that night so many months ago. And then she disappeared without a trace.

There hadn't been any further attempts on Elsa's life, but the queen was much more protected now. A new Captain of the Guard had to be appointed, as Kaylor had been killed. Her new captain, a man named Konstantin Jorde had been appointed. And he was a huge stickler for rules and protocol. Elsa could hardly sneeze without a guardsman knowing. Elsa was a little envious of Anna, who didn't have nearly as many guards watching her.

The day after she had returned from her trip, she made sure that her guard knew that Hans was behind the attack. Or at least that's what the assassins claimed. She couldn't be sure because they had to be pretty stupid assassins to name the person who hired them. Of course, they probably weren't too bright if they were attacking a queen; one with control over ice and snow no less. But even so, it couldn't be ignored that someone had attempted to take Elsa's life. And if that girl hadn't been there, Elsa probably wouldn't be sitting in her study at the current moment.

Trade was going very well with Ajana since the agreement was struck all those months ago. Although Elsa was continually getting letters and proposals from the king for her to marry the prince. She cringed at the thought. Just imagining being married to that man disgusted her, and Anna wasn't too far behind.

When Anna had heard about all the proposals, at first she had been hesitantly happy for her sister. However when Elsa told her of the prince's behavior, that happiness turned to downright loathing. Anna hated anyone who upset or annoyed her sister. For one that was her job. And for another, despite being the younger sister, Anna felt she had a responsibility to look out for her older sister. She thought that although Elsa was by no means stupid or naive, no one could deny the fact that she spent about thirteen years cooped up in her room. Only her parents being allowed to enter the room, with the exception of the occasional servant, usually Kai or Gerda.

And although Elsa appreciated her sister's attempts to protect her, she felt they were unnecessary. She knew Anna wasn't much more socially inclined than she was. She may have wandered the castle, but her little sister was cooped up just as much as she was. Of course until Elsa's coronation. Elsa shook her head at the memories. That had been a disaster. But she was thankful for one thing, it gave her Anna back. After years of hiding in fear, fear of hurting, or worse, killing sister, she finally had the one thing she had wanted for so long; a relationship with Anna.

A knock on her study door jolted her out of her thoughts. Kai poked his head through the door.

"Your Majesty? Dinner will be served shortly." Elsa nodded.

"Thank you Kai, I'll be there shortly." Kai bowed and left the queen's presence. Elsa stood and checked her appearance in the mirror. Ever since the event many called "The Great Freeze" she tended to continue wearing her ice dresses, unless it was a formal event. They were just so much easier to deal with; she could design whatever she wanted to wear, she didn't need to change for everyday activities and less laundry for the servants. Sure that's what they were for, but Elsa had grown up with most of them looking after her, putting up with her behavior when she was younger. She felt like she owed them at least a little less laundry.

As Elsa proceeded to the dining hall, a small snowman crept up behind her with the intention of trying to tackle her legs. But before he had the chance, Elsa spoke. "Olaf, it won't work." The little snowman looked disappointed.

"Aww, Elsa. How did you know I was here?" Elsa chuckled.

"Olaf, your flurry makes the air quite cold. It's quite obvious when you're around." Olaf pouted.

"Fine. You win this time Elsa, but I will surprise you someday."

"I'm sure you will Olaf." The little snowman laughed and ran back to whatever he was doing before trying to surprise Elsa.

As Elsa walked into the dining hall, Anna and Kristoff were already there waiting for her. Sitting down across from her sister, they started eating. Once finished with their evening meal, Anna wanted her daily dose of chocolate, so the servants brought a few slices of chocolate cake to the table.

Digging in with enthusiasm Anna started conversation with her sister. "So.. Elsa.. Did you hear the rumors of the Firebird? Apparently there have been some increased sightings of it! Or at least, that's what some of the servants were saying. They've even said it's been spotted perched on top of the castle! Isn't that amazing?" Elsa rolled her eyes. Anna typically wasn't one for gossip, especially from servants, but for whatever reason, she always was on the lookout for information about this Firebird that the entire kingdom seemed insistent that it was real.

"Anna, you know I don't believe in that silly rumor." Anna pouted.

"It's not just a rumor Elsa! I can just sense it. It's real!" Elsa laughed.

"You can 'sense' it? Really Anna?" Anna huffed and took another bite, looking at Kristoff for backup.

"You never know Elsa. You've met trolls before. I mean you even created real, living snowmen. What's so wild about a Firebird?" Elsa shook her head.

"It's not that I don't believe in the existence of such a creature.."

"Ha!"

"Anna let me finish. I don't deny there could be such a creature in existence. But I am highly skeptical that it lives around here."

"Aww Elsa, you're no fun at all." Suddenly a snowball was sent hurtling towards her sister and hit her in the face. Anna blinked once.

"What the.. What was that for Elsa!?" Elsa laughed at her sister.

"What? I can be fun, you seem to enjoy our snowball fights in the ballroom." Anna blushed. She knew Elsa was right, she did love 'snow days' with her sister. It felt like her sister let loose and allowed herself to just be 'Elsa, Anna's older sister.'

"You're right. But now I have to go clean myself up, thanks to you." Anna stuck her tongue out at Elsa. Elsa chuckled at her sister's gesture.

"You want me to come help you?" Kristoff offered.

"Oh no, don't worry about it. Shouldn't take that long. It's only frozen water after all." Kristoff nodded at his wife. Anna got up and started towards her room. It wasn't far from the dining hall. Candles lit the walls, dimly lighting the hallways. As Anna neared her room, she heard what she thought was movement from the shadows.

"H-Hello? Is anyone there? Elsa? Olaf? Kristoff?" When no one answered, Anna tried to brush it off. She reasoned that it was probably just a rat or something. When she heard the noise again, she being a little more worried. She quickened her pace towards her room, but before she got there, a hand covered her mouth. She tried to scream, but her attacker's hand prevented her some making a sound. She struggled, but the man was too strong for her. He laughed.

"Don't struggle Your Highness, you'll only end up hurting yourself. And we need you in good condition for what we have planned." Anna's eyes widened. Who was this man? What did he want with her? Where was Kristoff and her sister? The man pulled out a chloroform soaked handkerchief and placed it over Anna's nose and mouth. The girl fainted quickly and the man slung her over his shoulder and silently escaped the castle.

* * *

"Anna has been gone an awfully long time." Kristoff wondered where his wife was. Elsa was wondering as well. Anna sometimes got distracted, but this was a little much, even for her. She got up.

"I'll go look for her." Kristoff nodded. Elsa left the dining hall and made her way for Anna's room. She knocked on the door. "Anna? Are you okay in here?" No answer. She knocked again and when no one answered the door, she hesitantly pushed on the door. To her surprise the door opened immediately.

Elsa knew at once something was wrong. There was no sign of Anna ever having been in her room. Elsa quickly searched for any sign of her sister. When she came up empty handed, she started to panic. What had happened to her sister? Her eye was caught by a folded up sheet of parchment sitting on Anna's nightstand. It was addressed to Elsa. When she picked up the paper, she saw it was sealed with a wax seal. She was unfamiliar with the insignia on the wax though. She committed the symbol to memory before breaking the seal of read the letter. With every word, her heart sank.

_My dearest Queen Elsa,_

_If you are reading this then I'll assume my man has succeeded with his mission. If you've come looking for Anna, you're far too late. Your sister __is gone. __I have had my man kidnap your sister and I have no intention of letting her go. Unless of course you're willing to make me a trade. I will return your sister to you, unharmed, if you give me the throne of Arendelle. If you refuse, well.. I promise you Anna will suffer, and she will die. And you will live with the guilt that you caused her death. Think it over. You have a week, after that, I can't promise you Anna will remain 'unharmed.' Oh, and if you have any ideas of launching a 'rescue' for your beloved sister, don't waste your time. I have my sources and if you try, your sister will not live to see the rescue. In fact, she'll be dead before your forces leaves the castle. _

_Soon to be King Hans_

Elsa slowly sunk to the floor, rereading the letter. Hans had her sister. And if she didn't give up the kingdom, her sister would die. Elsa clutched the letter to her chest, tears in her eyes. She didn't know what to do. She fled to her room and locked the door. Sliding to the floor like she had done all those years ago, it started snowing in her room. She was losing control again. She tried breathing slowly, reciting the words her father taught her all those years ago. _'Conceal, don't feel.' _How much she hated those words. But she had nothing else to fall back on.

She hadn't lost control like this in what seemed forever. But with her sister being kidnapped, she didn't know what to do. She couldn't let Hans control Arendelle. She and Anna had worked so hard to keep it from him, but she couldn't let her sister die either. She was slightly disgusted with herself for having the think about this though. This was her sister she was talking about! Nothing was more important than her. And yet... Ice started creeping up the walls of her room. Suddenly she heard a knock on the door.

"Elsa? Are you in there? I was worried, when you didn't come back, I thought something might have happened. Did you find Anna?" Elsa cried harder, she didn't know what to do. If she told Kristoff, he would certainly rush off to find Anna, and she didn't put it past Hans to follow through on his threats. Kristoff knocked again in frustration. "C'mon Elsa, open the door!" She buried her face in her hands. Kristoff huffed. "Fine, don't come out. I don't know what's wrong with you Elsa, but when you're ready to come out, come find me." Tears streamed down Elsa's face, she couldn't. She knew she should tell Kristoff, he was her husband. But Elsa couldn't risk Hans harming Anna.

For the first time in a year, Elsa completely lost control. Looking around her, she saw flurries of snow falling around her, ice suspended in the air. She closed her eyes, chanting the words. But nothing helped, Elsa had completely lost control, and it scared her. And in the back of her mind, she was disgusted with herself. 'This is your sister! You should have been angry when you read that letter! You should have immediately gone to save her! But instead you're hiding in your room like a coward." This made Elsa cry harder. And for the first time in forever, Elsa cried herself to sleep, right on the floor, unaware of the beautiful orange bird flying away from her window.

* * *

Kristoff had left Elsa to whatever she was doing in her room. He was out looking for Anna. When he found the door to their room ajar, he started searching the castle. He searched for hours, but found nothing. He wandered out into the courtyard. Even though it was dark, Anna sometimes liked to take walks under the starlight. She said it helped her clear her thoughts.

When he found no sign of her, he sighed and sat himself on a stone bench. What had happened to her? He didn't know why he hadn't alerted anyone of her disappearance, but he had this gut feeling that he shouldn't. Suddenly Kristoff saw something that made his jaw drop and he quickly jumped up. A bright yellow, orange and red bird flew into the courtyard. Landing in front of him. Kristoff whispered to himself. "The Firebird." The bird looked him in the eye with her white eyes. He blinked and when he opened his eyes the bird was gone and in front of him stood a yellow eyed girl. Kristoff took a double take before speaking.

"What… Who are you?" The girl quickly glanced around to see if they were alone.

"I'll tell you on the way. Right now, I need your help. You and Sven." Kristoff looked at the girl, confused. She shook her head and mumbled something before speaking again. "Hey, big guy! Did you hear me? I need your help and I think you'll be eager to help me." Kristoff furrowed his brow.

"Help you with what? Why would you need my help?" The girl sighed in a frustrated way.

"I need your help to save the princess." Kristoff's eyes bulged out of his head.

"Save her from what? Are you talking about Anna? Where is she?" The girl looked a little confused before she held up her hand, silencing Kristoff.

"I'll explain on the way." Kristoff nodded and motioned the girl to follow him to the stables, where Sven was. As they quickly walked, Kristoff spoke again.

"What happened to Anna? What do we have to save her from? Who are you?" The girl sighed.

"Your wife was kidnapped, by Hans." Kristoff growled.

"That jerk is back? I thought he was banished or something." The girl nodded.

"He was. He was stripped of his title and honor before being exiled from the Southern Isles. But he's apparently been planning his revenge. That attempt on the Queen's life a few months ago was his doing as well." As the reached the stables, Kristoff slammed his fist against the wood of a stall.

"I'm going to kill that bastard. He's messed with my family enough." The girl placed a hand on his shoulder. Kristoff noticed her hand was abnormally warm.

"I understand your anger my friend, but now isn't the time to lose yourself. Anna needs you." Kristoff nodded. He let Sven out of his stall. Immediately the reindeer knew something was off and looked to Kristoff.

"Time to go save my wife buddy." Sven nodded and allowed Kristoff and the girl to climb on his back. "Where are we going then?"

"Hans and his men have set up their camp near the base of the mountain. I've been tracking them ever since I caught wind of them near Arendelle." Kristoff nodded.

"You heard her buddy. We've got to go save Anna!" Sven took off, running into the night.

* * *

Jaymen was thinking about what put her in this situation, riding a reindeer with Kristoff, to rescue the princess. When she learnt of Hans' plan, she had tried to stop him, she tried to warn the castle, but she was too late. The assassin had taken Anna already. She could have tried to track Anna on her own, and no doubt she probably could have. However she needed Kristoff's help.

She had been tracking Hans, watching him. She knew he was no stranger to magic. He had some pretty powerful enchantments cast over his camp and men. Once inside his camp, her powers would be weakened to the point of near uselessness. The enchantments were meant for Elsa, incase she tried to rescue her sister, but they worked the same on Jaymen's powers. And they meant once inside, she'd need to rescue the princess the old fashioned way; breaking her out and running. But with all the men Hans had, she needed back up. Elsa was in no condition to help, her powers were out of control, and her mental state was questionable at best. Jaymen thought it would be for the best to leave her out of this.

"So, you never answered my question. Who are you?" Jaymen sighed.

"Well, you've seen what I can do, I suppose who I am doesn't matter. My name is Jaymen, I am the Firebird." Kristoff nodded.

"I figured that much. But maybe I should have rephrased the question. Why are you rescuing Anna? Why do you care so much? Most people wouldn't risk their necks when we have guardsmen to do that." Jaymen blinked.

"Did Elsa not tell you?" She was confused. She knew that Hans had written a letter to Elsa, she'd have thought Kristoff would know about it. But Kristoff shook his head.

"No, Elsa didn't say anything. I knocked on her door, but she never answered. You're telling me she knew about this and didn't go try to rescue Anna herself?" Jaymen looked at Kristoff with a sadness in her eyes.

"She.. can't. Hans is planning on using Anna to get the throne. And if Elsa was to send any rescue, he'd kill Anna." Kristoff's head whipped around.

"What!? Then Anna's already dead?!" Jaymen quickly shook her head.

"No, no. Hans has no idea we're coming, I'm sure of it. He had his people keep an eye on Elsa's behavior. No one was watching you or me as we left. They were probably too busy making sure Elsa didn't do anything." Kristoff sighed in relief.

"Okay, so what do you propose we do once we get there?"

"Well, first we need to find Anna. I only know they they took her, but I don't know where they're keeping her. Then we need to break her out, and the run. I suspect Hans probably has spells or magic protecting her that will alert someone if we try to free her. So we need to keep out of sight until we find her. No one can know we're there." Kristoff was about to open his mouth, before Jaymen cut him off.

"Shh, look up head, you see those lights? That's Hans' camp. We need to figure out a way to sneak past the guards and find Anna." Kristoff nodded as Sven came to a stop.

"Okay buddy, you need to wait here. Stay out of sight." Sven snorted and looked disappointed that he couldn't come along, but obeyed Kristoff. Jaymen and Kristoff crept toward the camp. In the distance, she saw two guards standing watch. Jaymen motioned for Kristoff to follow her. The pair crept closer to the guards. Looking around Jaymen checked to see no other guards were around. Satisfied she was in the clear, she took two arrows from her quiver and nocked both. She pulled back and let both arrows fly. To Kristoff's amazement, both arrows hit their targets. An arrow lodged itself in each of the guard's heads, killing my instantly; without a sound. Jaymen put her finger to her lips and she and Kristoff quickly dragged the guards deeper in the forest.

"Quickly, strip them of their armor and put it on quickly." Kristoff nodded. Luckily both men that Jaymen had killed were close to the two of them in size. Once dressed, Kristoff asked, "What about our faces? Hans knows what I look like, he'll recognize me." Jaymen handed him a cloth and a helmet.

"Here, wrap the cloth around your face and put the helmet on. That should disguise you long enough for us to find Anna." Kristoff did as he was told and the two walked into Hans' camp.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, so chapter 2. I don't really know what to say about this. There's probably a bunch of 'What the fuck just happened' going on. But trust me, it's all part of the greater story. I found this chapter somewhat enjoyable to write, but I'm thinking that the next chapter will be a little more entertaining. At least to write. **

**I'm genuinely enjoying this story. I think it might be because I have it all planned out and I don't have to think about the plot or anything. I just have to think of specifics and how to word it. Thanks for the follows & favorites. I'm honestly not expecting a lot from this until I either complete it or get pretty far into it, since it's an Elsa/OC story. But it's fun, so I write it. I've been itching to write a **_**Frozen **_**story for the longest time. **

**Anyways, sorry for cliffhanger, but I'm amazing at leaving stories on cliffhangers. Any spelling or grammar errors are my own, since I don't have a beta. I hope you enjoyed. Oh and if this chapter seems a little.. weird, I was listening to _Monster _by Skillet while writing it, so.. that could be why.  
**

**A Charmed Vampire**


	3. Rescuing a Princess

**The Firebird**

**Chapter 3**

**Pairing: Elsa/OC**

**Rating: T for Language and Content**

* * *

Both Jaymen and Kristoff were on high alert as they walked into Hans' camp. Their disguises seemed to be working though since no one called them out. They passed a few guards who just waved at them. Kristoff waved back and the pair kept moving. Jaymen didn't want to spend anymore time in the camp than they had to. It was disconcerting to her; to not be able to use her powers to their full potential. She had felt a chill run up her spine as soon as they had crossed the line where Hans had set up the magic dampening enchantments. And Jaymen never felt cold, ever. Her inner fire kept her warm, so to feel a chill was a foreign sensation to her.

Starting the search for Anna wasn't easy. Jaymen and Kristoff pulled back the flap of the closest tent, only to be greeted by a couple of Hans' men. One of them smiled at Jaymen. "What's a pretty lady like yourself working here? Shouldn't you be home with a husband and kids?" Jaymen just rolled her eyes.

"Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, I'm unmarried." Kristoff chuckled a little as the man spoke again.

"Aw, someone as beautiful as you can't be at least betrothed to someone."

"No, I'm not." The man raised an eyebrow.

"Still doesn't really answer my question. What are you doing working for Hans?" Jaymen shrugged.

"Seemed like a worthy enough cause." She said vaguely. The man nodded.

"Indeed it is. That witch should never have become queen of Arendelle. I'm just doing my part to make sure Hans is the next ruler, so he can drive those filthy magic users out of the kingdom." Jaymen gritted her teeth. And also internally laughed a little. Hans was getting help from or was a magic user himself. The enchantments around his camp proved that. She just shook her head.

"Alright, anyways, me and my friend here was just looking for someone, who obviously isn't here. We'll get out of your hair." The men nodded and the one who had been talking winked at Jaymen, who just rolled her eyes again and drug Kristoff out of the tent.

Looking around the camp, Jaymen internally sighed. There were so many places to look for Anna that she didn't know where to go. She took Kristoff by the elbow and dragged him into a deserted tent. "Kristoff, I have no idea where to start looking for Anna." Kristoff's eyes bulged and he hissed out,

"You mean you don't know where they were keeping her!?" Jaymen raised her hands in surrender.

"Look, all I knew was that Hans was going to kidnap Anna to bargain for the throne of Arendelle. And that he was going to bring her here. The rest.. I don't know, okay? That's why I needed your help, I can't do this on my own." Kristoff let out a frustrated groan.

"Okay, well.. If you were Hans, where would you keep Anna?" Jaymen scratched her head as she thought.

"If I were him? I'd keep her near me, so I could gloat… steikje! Hans probably is keeping Anna in his personal tent. That's going to make it ten times more difficult to get her out of here." Kristoff nodded as Jaymen ran her hand through her hair. Shaking her head, Jaymen and Kristoff left the tent to make their way to Hans' tent.

It wasn't too hard to find. Hans' tent was by far the largest and was in the middle of the camp. As they reached the tent, Jaymen felt that chill run down her spine again. Quickly becoming alert, she tried to figure out if Hans had anymore enchantments around his tent. As she and Kristoff snuck around the tent, they both heard voices.

"Hans! Let me go this instant!" A male started laughing.

"Oh Anna, I'm afraid I can't do that. You see, you're my ticket to getting everything I ever wanted. I tried being the nice guy and taking you as my wife. But since that didn't go as planned, blackmailing your sister works just as well. Perhaps more effectively even. Plus I don't have to put up with you as a wife." Kristoff was about to run right into the tent to punch Hans in the gut, but Jaymen held him back.

"Elsa will never give up the kingdom to you Hans. Not even for me." Hans just laughed again.

"Oh Anna, you don't really believe that do you? Elsa would sacrifice anything to keep you safe. I would have been able to kill her had you not stepped in front of my sword all that time ago." Anna fell silent. Hans chuckled. "You know I'm right Anna. It's only a matter of time before Queen Elsa just gives it up. Pity, I was almost hoping that she would try to rescue you herself. With all the precautions I've taken, she wouldn't have stood a chance. I'd have gotten to finish what I started all that time ago."

Jaymen was gritting her teeth, trying to hold both herself and Kristoff back. But it was becoming increasingly difficult. She had half a mind to send an arrow flying into the tent, but she refrained. This was a rescue mission only; get in, get out. Elsa needed to get her sister back before she did something rash, so the sooner, the better.

Luckily for them, they didn't need to wait long before Hans left his tent to check on his men. Jaymen and Kristoff took the opportunity to sneak into the tent. Kristoff shut the flaps as Jaymen made her way over to Anna. She was sitting, chained to a chair. "Who.. Who are you and what do you want?" Anna sounded nervous and Jaymen just smiled at the Princess.

"Don't worry, I'm here to get you out of here." Kristoff walked over to his wife.

"And who is he?" She nodded towards Kristoff, whom she didn't recognize due to his face mask and helmet. Jaymen laughed quietly.

"Why Princess Anna, I think your husband might be a little hurt that you don't recognize him." Anna gasped as Kristoff took the cloth off his face.

"Kristoff! What… How did you get here?" Jaymen tried to figure out a way to free Anna while Kristoff was explaining. He was gracious enough to leave her secret and the extent of her involvement out of it, simply saying she had helped infiltrate the camp. Jaymen wanted to snort since it was really Kristoff who had helped her, but she was okay with it. She was never comfortable in the spotlight. Jaymen noticed that the chains were made of lead. A metal that wasn't as favored anymore. People instead using iron, but this was good for the rescue party.

Lead had a fairly low melting temperature, one that Jaymen thought that she could probably melt with what was left of her powers due to the enchantment. She was just worried about possibly harming the princess. If she could heat the bottom of the chains, that were wrapped around the bottom of the arms of the chair, she could probably melt a link or two without harming Anna. Enough to where the chains could be broken.

"Kristoff, I need you to go keep watch. I think I can free Anna, just… I need a little time." Kristoff nodded and went to stand by the front of the tent.

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to try to melt a couple of the links of the chains. That should weaken them to where they can be broken." Anna furrowed her eyebrows.

"And how do you plan on doing that? I don't think there's a fire hot enough around here to melt them." Jaymen sighed.

"Like this." Jaymen took a breath and summoned her inner fire. It was harder here, thanks to Hans. But the enchantment was only to dampen powers, not incapacitate them. She managed to summon a small flame in the palm of her hand. Anna gasped at the display of power.

"You're like Elsa! Except with fire… Which is totally cool too. I mean its hot, not cool. I mean.." Anna's voice trailed off as Jaymen laughed at the princess. She pouted a little as Jaymen worked on melting the chains. She focused the flame on a small part of the chain, so the entire thing wouldn't melt. Scalding metal wasn't the best thing to have around people.

After a few minutes, a few of the links had been broken and one of Anna's hands was free. Jaymen was working on the other when Kristoff rushed into the tent. "Hurry up, Hans is on his way back!" Jaymen groaned, she needed more time to melt the link. She didn't want to risk burning the princess.

"Kristoff, is there any way you can give me a couple more minutes? I don't want to risk hurting Princess Anna." Kristoff nodded.

"I'll see what I can do." Kristoff bounded out of the tent to do gods know what to distract Hans. Jaymen focused her attention on melting the links of the chain holding Anna captive. The princess looked at her savior.

"So… How do you plan on getting us out of here?" Jaymen shook her head.

"No idea, wing it and run probably."

"Good plan." Jaymen looked at Anna.

"Do you have a better idea, Your Highness?" Anna blushed.

"No… I just.. I mean.. No." As Anna was trying to formulate a response, Jaymen managed to break the last chain.

"Wait here, Your Highness. I need to go see what Kristoff is doing before we can sneak you out of here." Anna nodded as Jaymen went to the entrance of the tent. Peaking out of the flap, she saw Hans on the ground, with Kristoff offering him a hand to pull him off the ground. Hans looked a little angry.

"What's the matter with you!? How clumsy can you be? That was like the third him you knocked me over!" Kristoff had managed to not be recognized by Hans, but his luck wasn't to last much longer. Hans ripped the cloth off of Kristoff's face and immediately realized who it was.

"Ah, Kristoff. I'm surprised that Elsa sent you and she didn't come herself. Coward till the end I suppose." Kristoff balled his fists. Jaymen shot Anna a look and beckoned her to come over to her. Jaymen whispered to the princess, "Look, Kristoff just got caught. We're going to have to make a run for it. Sven is waiting just at the edge of the camp. Just keep running, I'll make sure Kristoff gets out okay." Anna was about to protest before Jaymen shot her another look, telling her not to argue. Anna quieted and nodded.

Jaymen exited the tent first and Hans immediately noticed. "You there! What were you doing in my tent?" Jaymen smirked.

"Oh nothing, just rescuing a princess. Now Anna, run!" Anna bolted out of the tent, pushing Hans out of her way. Kristoff grabbed his wife's hand and ran with her. Hans was outraged.

"Guards! The Princess has escaped, do not let her leave this camp!" Hans turned to face Jaymen. "You're going to pay for that. I don't know who you are, but you will pay with your life." Hans drew his sword, as Jaymen gripped her bow. She was decent with a sword, but doubted she could go toe to toe with the prince.

He lunged at her, leaping out of the way of his sword, Jaymen ran after Anna and Kristoff. Hans quickly recovered and ran after the trio. Guards were chasing after Anna and Kristoff, too busy to notice Jaymen shooting arrows at them. Most hit their marks. She had aimed for their legs, making the guards fall to the ground. Most of the guards had not been killed, but most were clutching the arrows lodged in their bodies, focusing on the pain and nothing else.

Too focused on giving Anna and Kristoff as good a chance as possible to escape, Hans managed to catch up to Jaymen. He grabbed her by the shoulder, twirling her around to face him. "You're not getting away so easily. You may have freed Anna, but someone as bold as you must be worth something to the Queen." Jaymen scoffed. She glanced in Kristoff and Anna's direction, seeing that she had been able to buy them enough time for them to escape.

Turning her attention back to Hans, "You know nothing. The Queen doesn't even know me." Hans laughed.

"Nice try, but I'm not stupid." Jaymen just shook her head.

"So what exactly do you plan on doing with me, O not stupid one?" Hans slapped Jaymen across the face.

"Remember who you are talking to girl. And lets just put it this way, by the time I'm through with you, you'll wish that you had never rescued Anna." Hans took a dagger out of the sheath that hung on his belt. He gripped the hilt and ran it into Jaymen's side. It wasn't enough to kill her, but it was dreadfully painful. Jaymen cried out in pain, clutching her side as Hans loosened his grip on her. Falling one knee, Jaymen tried to focus on anything but the pain shooting through her side and the blood dripping through her fingers.

She thought of Anna and Kristoff. She hoped that they had gotten away safely. Elsa needed to know her sister was alright. Jaymen still felt responsible for looking out for the young magic user. It was worth the pain that she knew Hans would give her. At the end of the day, she would just be reborn. Anna on the other hand, she was mortal. Giving up the rest of her life cycle for the princess was something she would never take back. Hans kicked Jaymen, causing her to lose balance and fall to the ground, landing in the dirt. He just laughed.

"Pitiful, aren't you? After all that effort, you got yourself caught. And I'm going to show you the meaning of pain. You can be sure of that. Maybe I'll even let my men have you, its been so long since they've had… decent entertainment." Jaymen gave Hans a look of loathing.

"At least Kristoff escaped with the princess, Hans. No matter what you do to me, you've lost this fight. Anna is safe and Queen Elsa won't give into your demands. Like I told you, the Queen doesn't even know me." Hans bent down to whisper in Jaymen's ear.

"Quite frankly, I don't care. It'll be child's play to kidnap Anna again, she's such a careless child." Not paying attention, Hans didn't notice Kristoff sneaking up behind him. Nor did he notice Kristoff raising a plank of wood. It wasn't until Kristoff brought the beam down on his head did he notice. And by then it was too late, Hans was out cold, slumped on the ground. Jaymen looked up at Kristoff.

"What are you doing here? I thought I told you get take Anna and get out of here?" Jaymen hissed. Kristoff just picked Jaymen up and ran off with her. "How did you even get past all the guards to get back in?" Kristoff just shrugged.

"They're all in the forest looking for Anna and me. It was easy to ride off in the direction of the castle, then double back. They're all so stupid they didn't notice a thing. Besides, Anna and I weren't about to leave you behind." Jaymen just sighed. She had mixed feelings. On one hand, she was grateful that they had come back for her. But on the other hand, she was a little mad that they had risked it to come back. If they had been caught again, her 'sacrifice' would have been for nothing.

Noticing the pain in her side getting worse because Kristoff was jarring her side a little, she groaned in pain. "Don't worry, we'll get you back to the castle. Someone there will be able to help you." Jaymen was in no position to protest. This side wound was worse than others she had sustained throughout the ages. She didn't know what it was.

Kristoff whistled for Sven, who came galloping, Anna on his back. The redhead gasped at the sight of her savior's wound. "Kristoff, we have to get her back to the castle!" He nodded as he placed Jaymen on Sven's back before climbing on himself. Sven groaned a little under the weight of three people, but managed to make his way back to Arendelle's castle. They came across a few of Hans' men along the way, but managed to sneak by them, unnoticed.

* * *

Reaching the castle gates, the guards immediately stood at attention, noticing that Princess Anna had been rescued. Captain Jorde and Kai came rushing out of the front gates as Kristoff was helping Anna off Sven. "My lady, are you okay?" Anna nodded.

"Yes Captain, I'm unharmed, although this girl who rescued me was injured, pretty badly." Jorde nodded.

"I'll fetch the doctor at once." As he shuffled off, Kai spoke.

"Perhaps it would be best if you went to see Queen Elsa now, Your Highness. She's quite distraught. She shut herself in her room and refuses to see anyone." Kristoff nodded.

"She was like that hours ago, before I left to help rescue Anna." Jaymen struggled to get off Sven. When the reindeer alerted his master of the wounded girl's actions, Kristoff rushed to help her off of Sven. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "You shouldn't be up, you need to get looked at." Jaymen shook her head.

"I know, and I will be, but I want to come with you to see the Queen." Kristoff and Anna both protested.

"You're in no condition to go anywhere but a bed!" "My sister can wait! You need to get help!" Jaymen raised a hand to silence them.

"I know, I know. But I'm coming whether you like it or not. So you can either help me, or I'll follow you. I'll drag myself on the ground if I have to." Kristoff could tell by the determined look in her eyes that she wasn't bluffing. He sighed.

"At least let me carry you. You're in no condition to walk." Jaymen nodded."Deal."

Kai cleared his throat.

"I think it would be best if we hurried. Her Majesty will be overjoyed to see her sister." Anna nodded. As the trio walked toward Elsa's room, being led by Kai, Jaymen occasionally let out little grunts of pain. Kristoff always looked at her apologetically and she just waved them off.

"It's not your fault Kristoff. I made my choice. If I had been paying more attention, I wouldn't have gotten caught by Hans." Kristoff was about to reply when they reached Elsa's door. He set Jaymen on the floor, supporting her with his arm. Kai knocked on the Queen's door.

"Your Majesty? I think I have someone out here who wants to see you."

"Tell them to go away Kai, I don't want to see anyone right now."

"Not even your own sister Elsa? I'm hurt." The door immediately opened. Elsa looked a little worse for wear. Her hair was a mess, eyes red and puffy from crying, and a whole host of other things. Her jaw dropped for a few seconds before tightly embracing her sister. Jaymen could see that Elsa's room was covered with ice and snow, but as she hugged her sister, all of it melted, disappearing as though it had never been there. "Anna, I thought.. But Hans.." Elsa tried to struggle out, tears dripping down her cheeks. And Anna wasn't too far behind. Anna gestured to Jaymen and Kristoff.

"These two rescued me. I don't exactly know how they knew or anything, but all of the sudden, they showed up and got me out of his clutches." Elsa looked over at the girl Kristoff was holding and noticed two things.

One, was that she was injured. She was sporting a fairly deep stab wound on her side. And two, that she was the same girl with the yellow eyes who had saved her all those months ago. Elsa let go of her sister and approached the girl.

"You… You saved my sister." Jaymen nodded.

"I told you we'd meet again sometime." Elsa chuckled.

"I suppose you did, didn't you?" Anna and Kristoff were a little confused before it dawned on them. This was the girl Elsa had been talking about, the one who had saved her from the assassins. They both looked at Jaymen with wide eyes. She laughed a little before coughing and clutching her side. Elsa looked a little panicked and concerned.

"You're injured! You need to get that looked at."

"Jorde has already gone for the doctor, although since we're not at the gate anymore, who knows what happened to them." Anna contributed.

"I insist, you must stay in the castle while you're recovering." Jaymen tried to protest.

"Oh, you don't need to do that Your Majesty. I wouldn't want to be a burden…" Elsa held up a hand to silence the girl.

"You'd be no burden at all. You've saved this family more than once, it's the least we can do. I must insist that you stay." Jaymen sighed and looked at Kristoff.

"I'm not going to win this one, am I?" He shook his head. "Alright, thank you, Your Majesty, for your kindness." Elsa waved it off.

"No, it's I who should be thanking you. You saved my sister, me and our kingdom from Hans. Such actions deserve recognition." She turned to address Kristoff. "If you'll escort our guest to one of the guest rooms… And stay with the girl until the doctor comes." Kristoff nodded and picked Jaymen up the girl wincing a bit. He carried her off in the direction of the guest wing. Elsa turned to Kai.

"Kai, I need you to go fetch the doctor and send him to Jaymen's room. She needs to be checked out and bandaged up. Then if you would go find Captain Jorde and send him to my study, there are some things we need to discuss." Kai nodded.

"As you wish, Your Majesty." And he scampered off in search of the doctor. Anna reached for her sister's shoulder and placed a gentle hand on it.

"That's the girl Anna. That's the one who saved me, and now she's saved you. I don't even know her name or where she came from or anything. How can I start to repay the girl?" Anna looked at her sister sympathetically.

"You're already starting, allowing her to stay here and recover. And just think, she'll probably be here for a while, plenty of time to get to know her." Elsa nodded at her sister.

"You're right. I… just find myself intrigued with her, she's special." 'More special than you know,' Anna muttered under her breath. "What was that?"

"Hmm? Oh nothing. Do I need to be present for the meeting with Jorde?"

"It would be appreciated if you would. Since the girl is incapacitated at the moment and Kristoff is with her, I need to know what happened. And Jorde needs to know what went on so we can prepare for Hans' next move." Anna nodded.

"Okay. Let's go." And the two sisters headed off to Elsa's study to figure out what was to come.

* * *

**A/N: Chapter 3! I actually… sort of like this chapter. I think the rescue was a little, meh. But the rest was pretty fun to write. Next couple of chapters will probably be fluff between Elsa and Jaymen. Need to build up that friendship a little, and rest assured this is not the last we've seen of Hans. Jerkface. **

**Anyways, there isn't much I need to say in this A/N. So, I hope you enjoyed it. All spelling and grammar problems are my own. Hopefully there aren't any plot holes either. Oh by the way, steikje is supposed to mean 'Damn' in Norwegian. Or that's what a translation site told me. Until next time!**

**A Charmed Vampire**


	4. At the Castle

**The Firebird**

**Chapter 4**

**Pairing: Elsa/OC**

**Rating: T for Language and Content**

* * *

Kristoff carried Jaymen off to the guest wing of the castle. She was still in some serious pain from the stab wound. She'd be able to survive this without having to complete her cycle unconscious at least. There was a saving grace in that. That was one of the weaknesses her powers had. She was basically immortal, as there was little she couldn't eventually recover from. Although her life cycles were in spans of five hundred years. If she died before that time was up, she would stay in stasis until her time was up. It had happened on her last life cycle, and she didn't really like it. Waking up years later, as if no time had past would probably bother anyone. Luckily it wasn't long and Bella had stayed with her during that time.

As Jaymen and Kristoff reached one of the guest rooms, Kristoff set Jaymen gently down so he could open the door and he guided her to the bed. Her bleeding had subsided, but the wound could easily have been opened again, so Kristoff was careful with the girl. He sat on the bed next to her. "I should be thanking you." Jaymen raised an eyebrow.

"What for?" Kristoff frowned.

"For everything really. I would still be sitting here, moping over Anna. And Elsa would still be held up in her room if it wasn't for you. I owe you a lot; the kingdom owes you a lot. Most of the people love Elsa, they would have been devastated if she had given up the kingdom to Hans. Or if Anna had been killed. The people love her just as much as Elsa. The kingdom is in your debt." Jaymen shifted uncomfortably. She didn't like the idea of people owing her anything, nor did she like being in the open and exposed like this. She prefered working in the background. She didn't want thje spotlight.

"As much as I appreciate that Kristoff, you guys don't owe me anything. I was only doing my duty to the kingdom. Saving the Princess from Hans was the least I could do." Kristoff shook his head.

"No, we do owe you. You didn't need to do what you did. We could have figured out a way to rescue her. But you took it upon yourself to do it. And got hurt in the process. Oh and don't think I've forgotten that you saved Elsa a few months ago. How ever did you manage that anyway?" Jaymen laughed a little, then grasped her side in pain.

"Let's just say I have a special interest in a woman who can summon ice with no effort." Then it dawned on Kristoff.

"Oh yeah! You're the Firebird! Did I mention how cool that is! Anna loves you, or well, rather the idea of you. I can't wait to see the look on Elsa's face when she finds out." Jaymen sharply looked at Kristoff.

"They can't know, Kristoff." The man pouted.

"Why not?" Jaymen sighed.

"It's dangerous. The Queen and I, our elements are polar opposites, we don't mix. I've been looking out for her yes, but at a distance. I shouldn't even be here really. But I get the feeling that if I refused, Her Majesty would chain me to this bed and force the issue." Kristoff nodded his head.

"Okay, fine. I won't tell her. But that doesn't mean I don't think you should at some point. Oh, and you're going to have to talk to Anna, she may not know you're.. you know. But she's seen your powers. She won't keep those to herself unless you tell her to. And even then, that's questionable." Jaymen groaned. She didn't think about that, not that she would take it back. Before Jaymen had a chance to answer, they heard a knock on the door. "Come in." Kai opened the door.

"Ma'am. This is our royal doctor, Nikolay Stohl. He'll be checking you over." Jaymen nodded. Stohl approached the bed.

"I'm going to have to ask you to remove your top ma'am. I need to get a closer look at the wound." Jaymen looked at Kristoff, blushing a little. She nodded her head towards the door. He was oblivious for a minute before he got the signal.

"Oh… Oh! Okay, I get it, I'll just wait outside." Jaymen nodded.

"Thanks Kristoff, you're welcome to come back in when he's done." Kristoff nodded as he left the room, closing the door behind him. Jaymen attempted to take her shirt off, luckily it was a shirt with buttons down the front. She didn't think she could have pulled a top over her head. She winced a couple times in pain while unbuttoning her top. Once it was off, she was just left in her breast wrap. She didn't really bother with formal or proper undergarments. She had gotten along fine without them, she didn't need to start now.

Stohl spoke up, "If you could on your good side please, so I may get a closer look." Jaymen laid back on the bed, on her non injured side. Stohl took a candle and held it closer to her body, careful not to get any hot wax on the girl. "This looks like a deep stab wound, I'm going to need to wrap it, to prevent any further possibility for disease. And I'm going to recommend you remain in the castle for a few weeks, so that I may regularly check your healing progress." Jaymen wanted to protest. She didn't get infected, and even if she did, her immune system was more than enough to hold off any disease, part of being a magical creature. She didn't want to have to spend any more time in the castle than she had to, but instead she just nodded.

Stohl gently touched the wound and Jaymen hissed in pain. "I'm sorry ma'am, I just needed to see how tender the wound was. I'll just bandage you up and let you rest." The doctor grabbed a cloth bandage and wrapped Jaymen's torso. "There, that should do for a bit. I'll come by to see you tomorrow." Jaymen once again nodded.

"Could you send Kristoff back in here?"

"Certainly." Stohl left the room and as soon as the door shut, it open again, Kristoff entering the room.

"So, what's the verdict?" Jaymen sighed.

"I'm going to have to stay here for a few weeks for the doctor can monitor me." Kristoff raised an eyebrow.

"And you're not happy with that?" Jaymen shook her head.

"No, not particularly. No offense Kristoff, this place is beautiful, but it's not my home. I don't belong here. I'm a simple commoner who was in the right place at the right time." Kristoff gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

"You're a simple commoner who also happens to be a Firebird." Jaymen cut him off.

"The Firebird actually, or phoenix if you prefer. I'm the only one of my kind." Kristoff looked at her apologetically.

"Okay, the Firebird then. But still, you're far more than just a simple commoner. You've saved Elsa. You've saved Anna. Hell, you've even saved this kingdom. We do owe you a lot. Regardless of what you may think. And I'm sure Elsa agrees with me."

* * *

The meeting with Captain Jorde went well. Anna recapped all that had occurred while she was in Hans' clutches to him and Elsa. When Jorde and Elsa inquired to how the girl had freed her, Anna hesitated. She wasn't sure she wanted to tell her sister about the girl with mysterious fire powers. But she decided to anyways.

"She actually is a sorceress, like you Elsa! She has control over fire, like you and ice." Elsa furrowed her brow. This girl was cursed, or gifted as the case may be, just like her? How did she manage? "The girl melted the chains and set me free."

Jorde nodded at the princess. "Thank you Princess Anna, this will be helpful information as we prepare for Hans' next move, as I'm sure he will be back." Elsa agreed with the captain. He bowed and left the study, leaving Anna and Elsa alone. The sisters sat in silence for a few moments before Elsa spoke.

"Anna, I'm glad you're okay. I don't what I would have done if I had lost you." Anna wrapped an arm around her sister's shoulder.

"You wouldn't have lost me. I'm sure you would have figured something out. But as the matter stands, you didn't. That girl and Kristoff saved me. I'm here now, that's all that matters. And now we know what Hans is up to. We'll be ready next time." Elsa looked at her sister.

"You're right, I'm just nervous. I don't know what to expect from him next. He's already tried to kill me, and trade Arendelle for you. I don't know what else he could do. And that scares me." It was hard to Elsa to admit out loud that she was scared. "I'm also curious about the girl who saved you. From my memories, I've never seen her around Arendelle. And I could have swore that I knew every one of my subjects." Anna shrugged.

"Maybe she doesn't live around here and we were lucky enough to get her help. I mean, she is a magic user. As much as this kingdom accepts magic now, I can understand why she wouldn't live in the city." Elsa nodded, she understood what it felt like to have no where to go and no one to turn to.

"When did you get so wise, my dear sister?" Anna giggled.

"Well one of us has to be." Elsa gasped and gently bumped shoulders with her sister.

"Anyways, speaking of magic users, I think I'm going to go thank the girl in person, actually find out her name, perhaps? You're welcome to join me." Elsa agreed, she too wanted to thank the girl that she owed everything to.

Leaving the study, Anna and Elsa walked towards the guest wing. They started chatting about random topics. When they reached the girl's room, Elsa knocked and heard a voice from inside. "Come in." Elsa opened the door and was greeted by Kristoff sitting on the woman's bed.

"I hope we're not interrupting anything?" The female shook her head.

"No, Kristoff and I were just talking, Your Majesty."

"Elsa." Jaymen cocked her head to one side. "Just call me Elsa." Anna waved her hand.

"And just call me Anna!" She said excitedly. The girl nodded.

"As you wish Elsa and Anna. I'm sure you'd like to know my name. Especially after I so rudely denied it to the Queen a few months ago." Elsa nodded, she had never forgotten that moment, as well as the fact that the girl had never revealed her name. "My name is Jaymen. I've been living here in Arendelle for a year or two now." Elsa and Anna both looked at each other, remembering their conversation from earlier.

"Have you? I don't recall ever seeing you in the city." Jaymen sighed and nodded.

"I don't live in the city. I'm more of a traveler, moving around all the time; sights to see you know?" Anna was the one who spoke up this time.

"Oh yes! Arendelle has some great scenery. I remember when I was looking for my sister with Kristoff, tramping around the countryside. Even covered in snow, it was beautiful." Anna enthusiastically said. "Were you here for the… you know…" Elsa nearly groaned at her sister. She had been forgiven for her little loss of control, but that didn't mean she forgave herself. Elsa watched Jaymen's face closely as she responded.

"Indeed I was here for the Great Freeze. Or whatever it is called. And you are right Anna, the scenery in Ardenelle is beautiful, even covered in snow. I also need to congratulate you Elsa." Elsa looked surprised.

"Me? What for?"

"That ice castle you built. It is a gorgeous piece of architecture. I couldn't imagine building something like that." The next comment Elsa didn't think about, she just let it sort of slip out.

"Can you create things with your powers?" Jaymen's eyebrows shot up and Elsa blushed at her lack of tact.

"How did you…" Jaymen trailed off. Kristoff was just awkwardly sitting on the bed, waiting to see how this turn out.

"I told her. I'm sorry if it was meant to be a secret. I didn't know, I swear. If I had known I wouldn't have said anything, but my sister knows what it's like. I mean not specifically with fire powers, but she has powers you know? Wait, of course you know that…" Both Jaymen and Elsa chuckled at Anna, who turned to pout at her sister.

"Don't worry about it. Just as long as they stay between us. I don't want it to be common knowledge." Jaymen gave Kristoff a look and the man nodded subtly. That look didn't escape Elsa, but the Queen didn't comment. Instead she spoke to Jaymen.

"I promise that your secret will not leave this room, right Anna?" Elsa sternly looked at her sister, who nodded vigorously.

"Yeah, what Elsa said. I promise I won't tell anyone else." Elsa suddenly thought about Captain Jorde. She made a mental note to tell the captain not to say a word to anyone about Jaymen's powers.

"Thank you." Jaymen bowed her head. In a moment of silence, Elsa finally got a good look of the girl laying on the bed next to Anna's husband. She was quite beautiful, even with her torso wrapped up in white bandages. Elsa wondered if she had anyone to return home to, a family, friends, a husband. Elsa winced at the last one, she didn't know what it was, but thinking about a potential spouse for the girl made Elsa uneasy. The Queen simply shook it off and smiled.

"You must be tired, we'll leave you to get some rest. If you want to join us for breakfast in the morning, you're more than welcome." Jaymen nodded.

"Thank you Elsa, I would be happy to join you."

"Good, I will send Kai to wake you in the morning, I hope you have a good night." Elsa waved at the female before leaving the room, Anna close behind her. Kristoff stood and spoke to Jaymen. Elsa could barely make out what they were saying.

"Don't worry Jaymen, everything will be okay." Kristoff emerged from the room, shutting the door behind him. Grabbing Anna's hand the couple bid Elsa good night and headed towards their chambers. Elsa stood for a few minutes, just looking at the girl's door, before leaving for her own room.

Turning the knob of her own door, Elsa stepped inside, gently shutting the door. She looked around the room. Just a few hours ago, this room was covered in ice and snow. Elsa remembered what she felt like. She was distressed, panicked and afraid. She hated losing control and she had been doing great, but when Hans captured her sister, she lost it. Sitting on her bed, she placed her face in her hands.

What would have happened if Kristoff and Jaymen hadn't saved her sister? She knew what would have happened. She would have complied with Hans' demands. Nothing was more important than her sister, not even her kingdom. She was disgusted with herself. Arendelle was her home, she was their Queen. She was expected to put the kingdom before everything, and yet she knew if it came down to it, she couldn't do it. She would sacrifice Arendelle for her sister. And that's what scared her.

Changing into some night clothes, Elsa laid her head on her pillow. Quickly falling asleep, hoping that things would get better in the days to come.

* * *

The next morning Jaymen heard a knock on the door as she was preparing herself for the day. "Ma'am? The Queen and the Princess wished for me to fetch you for breakfast." Jaymen yawned.

"Thank you Kai, I will be right out." Quickly checking her appearance in the mirror, she frowned a little. She wasn't ugly by any means, but she felt a little underdressed and inadequate in the presence of the Queen and her sister. She emerged from her room dressed in a white shirt and dark brown trousers, complete with black boots. Jaymen never was one to wear dresses, ever. Although in the back of her mind, she thought that if the Queen asked it of her, she would. She shook her head, shaking the thought.

Kai greeted her as she stepped out into the hall. Her side was feeling much better than it had the previous day. Thanks to her Firebird, the woman healed a little faster than normal humans, although not as fast as some other supernatural species.

She followed Kai to the dining room and he bowed before opening the doors. She noticed as she approached the table, Elsa, Kristoff and Anna were already there.

"Good day to you! How are you this fine morning?" Jaymen smiled at Anna.

"I'm doing well this morning Your.. I mean Anna. How was your night?" She said politely as she sat down. It was lucky for her that she had been trained in etiquette early in her life. She didn't need to worry about embarrassing herself as she ate.

"I'm doing amazing! I hope you don't mind, but I thought that we, I mean Kristoff and I, might show you around the castle today?" Elsa looked at her sister.

"Anna, don't you think you should let her rest?" Anna looked a little deflated.

"Oh yeah, I'm sorry, I didn't think.. I mean, if you need to rest, we can do that another time?" Jaymen laughed.

"Don't worry Anna, I'd be more than happy to accompany you today." Elsa was about to protest, insisting the girl rest before Jaymen cut her off.

"I say this all due respect Elsa, but I'm fully capable of gauging my physical capabilities for the day. I assure you that I will be able to keep up with Anna and Kristoff today. And I assure you that if at any point I do not, I will return to my room to rest. Besides, I think some exercise would do me good." Elsa slowly nodded.

"Well, if you're sure." Jaymen nodded. "Okay, just be careful. I don't want anything happening to you." Elsa turned to Anna.

"Remember not to overwhelm her Anna." Anna waved her sister off.

"What are you talking about Elsa? I'm never like that!" Elsa sighed and looked at Kristoff.

"Don't worry, I'll reign her in." Anna pouted.

"What is this, 'Gang up on Anna' day?" The three others laughed.

"Sorry Anna, you're just so easy to tease." Jaymen said. Anna just pouted more. "Hey, don't look at like that. Otherwise I may change my mind about the tour." Anna gasped.

"You wouldn't!" Jaymen got an evil glint in her eye that didn't' go unnoticed by Elsa. The Queen just laughed. It looked to her that Anna might have finally met someone that could keep up with her.

"You don't want to test that do you?" Anna folded her arms and huffed.

"Fine." Jaymen laughed.

The four spent the rest of breakfast discussing random topics, from everyone's favorite color to the state of Arendelle's ice businesses. Elsa noticed that Jaymen stayed mostly quiet, inputting things when necessary. Elsa was still intrigued with the girl. She was mysterious, seemed fairly private, but loyal and brave, not to mention absolutely gorgeous. Elsa shook her head, wondering where that last thought had come from, but as Kristoff, Anna and Jaymen were talking about chocolate, she looked at the girl sitting beside her.

The girl looked young, no more than twenty years old. And she was definitely beautiful, no question about that. Her flawless complexion and dark skin gave her an ordinary, yet still extraordinary aura. The girl's body was extremely fit, but Elsa figured it was probably from her skill as a marksmen; handling a bow took strength and skill. Her dark brown hair framed her face nicely, traveling down her back in waves. Elsa noticed the reddish-orange streak in her hair, very similar to Anna's streak of blonde. Elsa wondered if it was natural, or… magical, like Annas'. But Elsa knew better than to ask. And last of all, Elsa was drawn to the girl's were the strangest yellow color, far from natural, but Elsa brushed it off as the girl being a sorceress.

Slowly Elsa noticed that the other three had stopped talking and noticed Elsa staring. The queen blushed and quickly went back to picking at her meal. Elsa could feel Jaymen's eyes on her, but couldn't bring herself to meet them. She was embarrassed that she had been caught staring at the gorgeous women. Elsa shook her head again. She didn't know where these thoughts were coming from, and in the back part of her mind, she was starting to like them.

* * *

**A/N: Hello! So chapter 4 is finally complete. I struggled a little with writing this one, mostly writing the filler portions, but I think it turned out decently. So the next couple of chapters are going to be mostly fluff, as I think I said in the last chapter. Elsa and Jaymen obviously need to interact some more. And I also want to build a friendship between Jaymen, Anna and Kristoff.**

**I was listening to both _Monster _and _Hero _by Skillet while writing this, if any of you are interested where some of this came from. Usually the music I'm listening to while writing gets a little transferred into my writing. ****Oh and if you guys missed it, or don't remember, Jaymen's faceclaim is Nikki Reed, if you're having issues picturing her. I don't know if anyone is, but I was writing a description of her and thought that I should probably clarify that.**

**Thanks for all the follows/favorites. And all the reviews. I'm glad you guys are enjoying this. I like writing it, so it's always nice to have people enjoy something that you enjoy. Anyways, as per usual, this story is un-beta'd so all mistakes regarding plotline, spelling and grammar are my own. **

**Until next time!  
**

**A Charmed Vampire**


	5. A 'Snow Day'

**The Firebird**

**Chapter 5**

**Pairing: Elsa/OC**

**Rating: T for Language and Content**

* * *

Being dragged along by Anna wasn't exactly what Jaymen had in mind for the day. But she wasn't too bothered by it. The feisty redhead was insistent that she show her savior around the castle. Anna and Kristoff showed the girl what seemed like a million and one paintings and tapestries. "And this one here, Joan of Arc. She's one of my favorites. I've always felt that I have a special connection with her. Maybe because I talked to her while Elsa was shut up in her room for thirteen years. Not that I'm mad at her or anything mind you. But it was lonely in the castle." Jaymen nodded absentmindedly. She hated to admit it, but she had started tuning the princess out after the first hour.

She appreciated the princess's thoughtfulness to take her mind off of everything, but it wasn't really helping. She didn't belong here in the least. Jaymen was a free spirit, she hated being tied down in one place for too long. And she wanted to leave as soon as she could. She would probably go back to watching the royal family at a distance.

Jaymen was following Anna down another hallway of the castle, when the three of them stopped at a door. Jaymen wasn't really paying attention and nearly bumped into Kristoff. After her near miss, she asked, "What are we doing here?" Anna wiggled her eyebrows and knocked on the door.

"Elsa! Take a break from your boring paperwork and come have some fun for once." Jaymen tried to protest. She didn't want to take the queen away from her work, but Anna was having none of that. She silenced the girl and knocked again. This time, a reply came from inside.

"Anna, I'm sort of busy right now." Anna pouted, even though her sister couldn't see it. Then she smiled evilly.

"Do you want to build a snowman?" There was silence and then the sound of footsteps. The door creaked open, revealing the queen standing there.

"You're not going to leave me alone until I give in, are you?" Anna shook her head, her braids whipping around her head.

"Nope, so you might as well just go along with it. Besides, our guest should see an impressive display of your powers." Elsa sighed.

"Anna, I'm sure Jaymen has better things to do than play in the snow." Jaymen cut in.

"Actually Elsa, I'm quite interested in seeing your powers first hand." Elsa raised an eyebrow and Jaymen just shrugged. "I bet fire magic isn't nearly as impressive as ice magic." Elsa sighed.

"Fine, to the ballroom, shall we?" Anna eagerly nodded, grabbing both Elsa and Jaymen by the hand and dragging them all the way, Kristoff bringing up the rear, in near fits of laughed from his wife's antics.

When they reached the ballroom doors, Elsa threw them open. She dismissed the servants who all bowed and left the room. Taking in a deep breath, Elsa summoned her ice. Flurries of snow started to fall from the ceiling. Jaymen looked up to observe the queen's impressive display of power and control. Magic was easy to lose control of if left unchecked. Jaymen couldn't help but be impressed by the control that Elsa had learned in the last year.

Snow started to pile up on the ballroom floor. When the ground was covered in a blanket of snow, Elsa stopped the flurries falling from the sky. As soon as she did that, a snowball came out of nowhere, hitting the queen in the back of the head. She cringed and turned to see Anna covering her mouth, trying not to laugh. "That was for earlier." Elsa rolled her eyes, but played along. She conjured a mammoth snowball above her head and started after Anna. The redhead let out a squeak and ran. Jaymen and Kristoff just stood on the sidelines watching Elsa chase her sister around the room.

"Kristoff, help me! I'm your wife, you should be protecting me from Elsa."

"You get involved Kristoff and you'll be sorry." The queen threatened. Jaymen nudged Kristoff, encouraging him to join in. The blonde man bent down to gather some snow in his hand. Once packed into a ball, both girls had stopped and were watching him closely.

"Choose your target carefully Kristoff. I won't hold back if you pelt me with that." Elsa threatened again. Kristoff raised his hand and aimed at Anna. His wife's eyes widened, but as Kristoff threw the ball, his direction changed last minute and he pelted Elsa with the white ball of snow. As the snow made contact with Elsa's body, Kristoff sprinted over to his wife, who by now had shook of the shock. The couple ran over to a particularly large mound of snow to hide from the queen. Elsa looked at Jaymen. "You planning on helping me get revenge on these two, right?" She jerked her head over in her sister's direction.

"I suppose, not that you need the help. You are the queen of ice and snow after all." Elsa nodded.

"But it's so much more fun when you have a partner." Jaymen smiled.

"Well, who am I to deny you fun?" Jaymen bowed. "I'm yours to command my Queen. What is our plan of action." Elsa giggled at the girl's actions. She stood regally and commanded the girl.

"Well my Lady, my plan is to play our strengths. I know for a fact that you are a very good marksman. So I'll focus on ammunition production and you focus on military actions." Jaymen grinned at Elsa. Anna and Kristoff didn't stand a chance.

* * *

While Elsa and Jaymen were formulating their plan of attack, Anna and Kristoff were also having an in-depth conversation. However, it wasn't about throwing snowballs.

"Kristoff, have you ever seen Elsa so… interested in another person outside the family?" Kristoff peaked over their selfmade snow fort to get a good look at the two women. The blonde was laughing with a huge smile on her face conversing with their guest. Elsa wasn't the same cold, closed off female she once was. But she never really let herself be herself around anyone but her family.

But here was this near stranger witnessing a 'snow day' with the royal family. That was a first. Elsa rarely showcased her powers in public. Although they were common knowledge, most of the kingdom only ever saw them on special occasions. Elsa and Anna had decided that covering the castle grounds in ice and having the citizens skate around and enjoy themselves would be a yearly event; the anniversary of the Great Thaw. It was a holiday of sorts in Arendelle.

But beyond that, no one really ever saw Elsa use her powers. Except this girl. Anna and Kristoff could see Jaymen was quickly worming her way into Elsa's heart. The married couple hoped that Elsa and Jaymen would pursue the friendship. From their observations, it looked like it was good for both women. Elsa looked freer than usual, and Jaymen had a goofy grin on her face, the first that Kristoff and Anna had seen grace the young woman's face since they had met.

Kristoff and Anna ducked back behind their snow fort. "We have to get Jaymen to stay in the castle as long as possible Anna. It might be selfish of us, but I've never seen Elsa that happy. Or Jaymen for that matter, even though I haven't even known her for forty eight hours yet." Anna nodded in agreement. She was a little envious that Jaymen could make her sister so joyful, but ultimately she just wanted Elsa to be happy.

She peeked over the snow fort again to get another look at the two when she was pelted in the face with a snowball. She shook the snow off her face and dodged another projectile flying at her face. She saw Elsa conjuring snowballs in Jaymen's hand and the girl was letting them fly towards the married couple.

Anna ducked back behind the snow fort. "Kristoff, they're attacking us! You know what this means?" Kristoff groaned. "War!" Anna was excited. Even though she knew they hardly stood a chance against the other pair, it was still fun. She gathered some snow into her hand, packing it tightly into a ball. She quickly stood up from behind the snow fort and threw the ball. Her aim wasn't as good at the marksmen so it was a far way off from Elsa and Jaymen.

"Return fire! This is a fully blown war, Your Majesty!" Jaymen informed the queen. Elsa just laughed and nodded at the girl.

"So it is. This is a battle I'm certain that we will win, my Lady."

"I think you are probably right."

* * *

What seemed like hours later, both sides were exhausted. Jaymen and Elsa had easily won the war, but that hadn't stopped Kristoff and Anna from trying. And it was the fun that counted. All four of them were laying on the ground, flurries of snow covering their bodies. Jaymen and Elsa were currently discussing magic, while Anna and Kristoff were just listening to the two.

"Magic comes from within Elsa. It's not something you're cursed or blessed with. You and I may have control over specific elements, but there are other kinds of magic besides elemental. Anyone, human or otherwise, can learn magic. Most just don't know how or don't want to deal with the sacrifices it requires." Elsa gave Jaymen a confused look. The girl sighed.

"Potioneers for example. Anyone can brew a potion of some sort. Sure, potions imbued with magic from the maker are more powerful, but even Anna here could combine some ingredients to make at least a Class I potion." Jaymen's words went right over Elsa's head and Jaymen could tell.

"I know you don't understand, but magic is a strange thing. It's not a blessing or a curse, it just is. Take the emotion of love. Love in and of itself is a kind of magic. It may not be flashy like elemental magic, but it's just as strong, if not stronger." That example struck home with Elsa. Of course love was a type of magic. It had been love that had saved her sister. It was love that allowed her to unthaw the kingdom.

"I see that one got through to you. Love is a very old and powerful type magic. It's not conventional, by which I mean you can't just control it like elemental magic. It's something that it within every single person, so in that respect every single being is magical, because we are all capable of love in some shape or form."

"How did you become so knowledgeable on magic?" Jaymen shrugged. It had actually been all of her experience with the stuff. Her and Bella had come in contact with nearly every single type of magical creature and magic in their two thousand years. But she couldn't tell Elsa and Anna that without talking about her past and what she was. Something that she didn't want to do, ever, if she had her way.

"I do a lot of reading."

"Speaking of magic, are we ever going to get to see yours?" Anna piped up. Elsa looked curiously at the firestarter. She was curious as well, she wanted to see the magic. Jaymen sighed.

"Haven't you already seen it Anna?"

"Well… Yes, but I thought… maybe… Elsa don't you want to see it?" The snow queen nodded.

"I will admit, I am curious to see your magic. Fire is so different from ice." Jaymen chuckled.

"And yet it's also so similar. They're both beautiful in their own way, but let it out of your control and it will consume everything." Elsa thought about that. That was a new way to think about it. They were polar opposites in terms of temperature, but in effect… they really weren't so different.

"C'mon Jay, pleaseeeee." Jaymen raised an eyebrow at the nickname the redhaired princess had given her, but sighed.

"Fine, but we need to do it outside. I don't want to risk burning anything important in the castle." Anna, Elsa and Kristoff agreed.

"We can go to the guard's training arena. It's entirely built from stone, you shouldn't burn anything there." Kristoff suggested. The girls agreed. Anna grasped Jaymen by the hand and started to drag her out of the ballroom. Elsa remained to clean up their 'snow day' while Kristoff followed his wife.

Left in solitude for a few minutes, Elsa took time to think about what had happened so far. Elsa knew she felt more free around the young girl. She was usually conservative with showing off her powers, and here she was today, conjuring snow falling from the ceiling; even creating snowballs in the young female's hand. Jaymen made Elsa feel comfortable. It didn't help that the girl was also stunningly beautiful. Although what caught Elsa's attention the most was the girl's yellow eyes. She assumed that they came from her powers, but they were stunning none the less. It made the girl unique. Elsa almost snorted. There wasn't nothing really 'normal' about that girl. Her eyes were just the most visible.

Elsa could see herself easily forming a close friendship with her guest. She was easy going, a little moody, but in such a short amount of time, Elsa felt as free around her as she did with Anna. And that was another thing, the girl had saved her life as well as her sister's life. That was not easily forgotten. Elsa felt like she had to make it up to Jaymen. She had saved everything that Elsa lived for; her sister and her kingdom. She owed the girl… everything.

* * *

As soon as Elsa was finished clearing the ballroom of all the snow, she went off in the direction of the training arena. Cracking open the door, she was greeted with the sight of Anna and Kristoff gawking. She looked over to who they were gawking at, and her jaw dropped as well. Jaymen was going through all sorts of hand to hand combat moves, working her fire into her movements. Each punch emitted a blast of orange, yellow and red flames. Every kick created an arc of the same flames. Following the end of her sequence, she conjured fire in her palm, held it up to her face and gently blew at the flames. They turned blue as they followed the direction of her breath, the air guiding the fire harmlessly into the sky.

Extinguishing her fire, she turned to see all three royals staring at her, open mouthed. "What?"

"That was like… amazing! I've never seen anything so cool… I mean hot… I mean.. ugh!" Anna tried to struggle out. Jaymen laughed at the princess.

"I guess; it's not that impressive." Kristoff stopped her.

"Yes it so is impressive. Wasn't that impressive Elsa?" Elsa still stood there, running through what she had just seen. The girl was so strong, powerful… beautiful even? Elsa felt a budding… something ignite within her. Watching the girl shoot fire, it was intense. But it was also gorgeous. It was like nothing she had ever seen before.

"Elsa?" Kristoff prodded again and the queen snapped out of it.

"Uh… Yes, indeed it was very impressive Jaymen. I only wish I had seen more of it." Jaymen lightly blushed at Elsa's praise of her skill. She bowed.

"Your wish is my command." And she started another fighting sequence. She had to admit, she was kind of showing off for the queen this time. She executed more difficult punches, jumps and kicks. And this time for her finisher, she created a bird from the flames, not dissimilar from her phoenix, except blue in color. It flew around the arena before dissipating into smoke.

Once again, the observing royals were in awe of the girl's powers. Anna and Kristoff were just impressed with the girl's skill. Elsa however was floored. Her display of power was impressive yes. But that wasn't really what got to Elsa. The girl didn't look any older than nineteen, and yet she had so much control over her powers. It took Elsa years of struggling and failure to gain any semblance of control over her powers, and still to this day she struggled. Elsa couldn't help but feel a little envious. "You have some amazing control." Elsa commented. Jaymen shrugged.

"I've had_ a lot _of practice. I've spent my entire life devoting myself to learning to control my powers. Mine are a little more… volatile than your Elsa. Were I ever to lose control, everything around me would burn. There would be no "Great Thaw" for me. Everything would be gone in an instant." Jaymen's voice hardened. Elsa thought she also detected pain laced with regret in her voice, but she couldn't be sure. "But enough of that. My powers aren't that great. I can't create life or anything like you can Elsa. That is truly impressive." Elsa blushed. To be complemented by obviously a highly skilled elemental caster was flattering.

And as if being summoned, a chill filled the room as the door creaked open. Elsa giggled a little. "Olaf, it's not going to work. Maybe if you had tried that a few minutes ago when I was… distracted. But not now." Olaf groaned as he pushed the door open.

"Fine Elsa, but I swear, I will get you someday." He noticed Jaymen standing in the middle of the arena. Hers was a face he had never seen before, so naturally he went over to her. "Hi! I'm Olaf and I like warm hugs!" He opened his little stick arms. Anna giggled at the little snowman and Jaymen's obvious discomfort with the situation. But none the less she bent down and gave Olaf a quick hug.

"Hi Olaf, I'm Jaymen, a guest of Elsa and Anna." Olaf looked over at the queen, who nodded.

"Well, if you're a friend of Elsa, you're a friend of mine!" Olaf smiled. "Oh, and you give extremely warm hugs. I like it!" He said in a matter of fact tone. Kristoff chuckled at the little snowman. Jaymen nodded her head.

"Of course, I am hot after all." As soon as the words left her mouth, Elsa picked up on the double meaning. Although it wasn't meant in that way, she couldn't help but let her thoughts wander again. Blushing she quickly returned her thoughts to the moment in front of her. Jaymen stood up. "I'm sorry to cut this short, but I am going to return to my room. It seems using my powers today has worn me out a little bit. I'm going to go rest up. If you could be so kind as to fetch me when dinner rolls around, I'll greatly appreciate it." Elsa almost slapped herself in the face. Of course the girl was still injured and she hadn't thought about it.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I wasn't thinking about your injuries. I hope that we haven't caused you any added pain." Jaymen held up her hand to silence the panicking queen.

"Don't worry Elsa. It's not your fault. I could have refused if I had wanted to. I wanted to show you three my powers. It's only a little weariness, I'm not in any pain because of it. I'll be fine once I've laid down for a little bit." Kristoff, Anna and Elsa nodded, watching the girl walk out of doors of the training arena and towards her room. Kristoff turned to the girls.

"She definitely is something, isn't she?" Elsa and Anna couldn't disagree. She was a special one. And if Elsa was going to be honest with herself, she was starting to feel… Something towards the girl. Although just quite what, she wasn't sure of yet. Be it friendship or something… else. She was determined to get to know the girl better.

* * *

**A/N: Okay, so I took a few days to actually write this chapter. I would write something, then be like "I don't know what to write next." But I finally figured out what I wanted from this chapter. I wanted a showcase of both fire and ice. The similarities and differences of the two elements. Both are deadly, and yet beautiful. **

**That little thing I wrote about magic, totally made up. But it's part of my AU. Jaymen's power showcase scene.. If you're having trouble picturing it, just think of firebending from **_**Avatar the Last Airbender. **_**That's basically what it is. Martial arts fused with fire. Although I see it more as an extension of hand to hand combat, like just having a longer reach on a punch or kick. **

**And the next couple of chapters are going to be mostly fluff. I little plot here and there, but I want Jaymen and Elsa to build up a relationship. Elsa will be the main pursuer of this relationship, which is probably a little OOC for her, but for what I have written of Jaymen's personality, it wouldn't really do for her to be the pursuer. **

**Anyways, I hope you guys liked this chapter!**

**A Charmed Vampire**


	6. Up the Mountain

**The Firebird**

**Chapter 6**

**Pairing: Elsa/OC**

**Rating: T for Language and Content**

* * *

Over the next couple of weeks Jaymen remained in the castle. Her side had healed with little complications, but that was to be expected since she was a magical creature. In fact she could have left the castle a while ago, but for some reason she stayed. She had gotten to know princess Anna fairly well as the young redhead insisted on dragging her everywhere. Jaymen could now say she had seen every inch of the castle, top to bottom. The princess was nothing if not persistent.

She had also gotten to know Kristoff as well, although on a slightly more personal level. Since he knew she was the Firebird she didn't need to hide it from him like she did with the rest of the royal family. She had spent a good deal of time with the blonde man. Much of this time was spent with Kristoff trying to convince her to tell Elsa and Anna about her secret.

"Come on Jaymen! They would love to know. If you worried about them thinking you're weird and kicking you out, don't. They would never do that. Besides, Elsa seems quite friendly with you." Jaymen raised an eyebrow. Kristoff just shrugged. "I don't know. You two seem to just… connect." Reflecting on that, Jaymen could probably see where Kristoff came up with that. Over the past couple of weeks she and Elsa had spent a large amount of time with each other.

* * *

Jaymen groggily woke to a knock on her door. She flopped out of bed and walked to the door, fully expecting Kai to be standing on the other side. But instead it was Elsa. The sight of the blonde instantly woke the girl up. "Oh, Elsa. I was expecting Kai. I would have bothered to look a little more presentable…" Elsa giggled

"Not to worry. I just came to see if you wanted to accompany me to breakfast. And maybe take a stroll around the gardens?" Jaymen nodded.

"Sure. I'd be happy to." Jaymen bowed slightly to the queen. "Allow me to freshen up for the day and I'll be right out." Elsa bowed her head to show her approval. Jaymen shut the door behind her as she readied herself for the day. She had to admit to herself, she tried to put a little more effort into her appearance. If she had thought about it a little more, she'd have realized that she was trying to impress the Queen.

Opening the door, Jaymen got a closer look at Elsa. She was wearing an elegant, yet simple ice dress, not too dissimilar to the dress she wore while held up in her ice castle. Jaymen stepped out of her room and offered her arm to the Queen. Elsa giggled and accepted the young female's arm. Over the last week Jaymen had been the perfect gentleman in Elsa's opinion. The woman was almost stiflingly formal with her. The queen wished the girl would loosen up some, but the gesture was sweet.

In fact over the last week Elsa had been growing fonder and fonder of the girl who had saved everything. Even through her formality, Jaymen was a passionate and free individual. The small amount of time Elsa had spent with her had shown her that. They two had spent some of the evenings discussing the history and properties of magic. Jaymen had a lot of experience and Elsa always found herself learning new things she never knew about magic. Some of it was beyond her comprehension, but just spending time with her guest was entertaining enough.

Reaching the dining hall, Jaymen opened the door, gesturing for the queen to step through the door first. "Why thank you, _my Lady_." Jaymen bowed slightly.

"Anything for you, _my Queen_." The two laughed. They had been playing that game ever since the snow day a week ago. Even though Elsa had made it quite clear she prefered to be called by her name by the young woman, the two sometimes referred to each other by formal titles. And although Jaymen wasn't actually a Lady, Elsa still referred to her as such.

The pair made their way to the table where Kristoff and Anna already sat. "So you two, what are you planning for the day?" Anna asked. Kristoff had to take a day trip to a nearby village to deliver some ice and Anna was going to tag along. Elsa looked at her sister.

"I planned to take a day off of work to spend with Jaymen. You two spend so much time with her, I've barely gotten to know her." Anna looked disappointed.

"Elsa! You never take days off to spend time with me!" Elsa chuckled at her sister.

"Yes, but I've also spent more time with you in general than I have with Jaymen. Besides, you've pestered me enough times out of work before." Anna looked a little sheepish.

"Yeah… well… You never do it willingly for me! I always have to force you." Elsa shook her head.

"Anna, you know that's not true…" And the two started talking about all the times Elsa had willingly put off work to spend time with her sister. Jaymen and Kristoff just looked at each other and rolled their eyes. This had been a common occurrence of late. Elsa and Anna would get into a playful argument about something, completely forgetting the other two, leaving them to talk amongst themselves.

"So, spending the day with Elsa huh? You know… This would be a perfect time to tell her." Jaymen groaned as she looked over at Elsa who was still absorbed in her conversation with Anna.

"I told you a million times already Kristoff, I have no intentions of telling her. As soon as I'm clear to leave, I plan to. I don't want to overstay my welcome." Kristoff waved her off.

"You're always welcome here Jaymen. In fact, I think all things being equal, Elsa would prefer it if you stayed here. She's been happier than usual with you around." Jaymen sighed. She didn't really want to have this argument with the blonde male again. He didn't understand. She and Elsa, in the long run, just weren't compatible. Fire and ice might have similarities in magical properties and behavior, but the two still just didn't mix. Elsa might enjoy her company now, but ultimately Jaymen knew she couldn't stay. Elsa was a human after all, not that Jaymen had a particular problem with humans, in fact she loved the species. But unlike humans, Jaymen was immortal, and would outlive all of them. Making friends now, she would have to watch them age and die. Something she didn't want to have to endure again. One of the curses on immortality.

"I'm sorry Kristoff. I just can't. I know you don't understand my reasons, but trust me. It'll be better for everyone if I leave soon." Kristoff just hung his head in defeat. He knew he wouldn't be able to win this at the current moment. He'd just try again later.

"Anna, we need to get going. I'll go grab Sven and the ice delivery and meet you by the front gate." Anna looked to her husband and nodded. The three women stood soon after Kristoff had left and proceeded to meet the Ice Master at the gate. "Now you two don't have too much fun without me!"

Elsa and Jaymen both laughed and nodded. "I promise Anna, we don't have too much fun. Besides, you not being there already takes out part of the fun." Jaymen replied and Elsa nodded in agreement. Both females had a soft spot for the redhaired princess.

Once they had reached the gate, Anna proceeded to hug her sister and then her new friend. Elsa tightly hugged her sister back while Jaymen just patted the princess on the back. Jaymen still wasn't used to a lot of human contact. She had always prefered her solitude, so besides Bella, she never really had much contact with others.

Elsa addressed Kristoff. "Take care of my sister. Remember that Hans is still out there and we don't know what his next move is going to be." Kristoff nodded.

"I'll defend her with my life Elsa, you know that. You be careful too." Elsa nodded as Anna climbed into the sleigh with her husband. Jaymen and Elsa waved as the two rode out of the castle grounds, leaving the two women standing in the courtyard. Elsa turned to Jaymen.

"So, I was thinking… I wanted to show you something. But it'll be a little bit of a walk, if you're okay with that?" Jaymen nodded.

"That's fine with me. I could use some exercise after been cooped up for so long." Elsa laughed.

"It's only been a week!"

"That's a long time for me! I'm used to living.. not in one place for long periods of time." Elsa giggled.

"Well, I'm glad you're here. It's been nice to have someone to talk with, who isn't my sister and her husband. Don't get me wrong, I love them but it's just… nice to have someone else." Jaymen nodded.

"I know how you feel," Jaymen whispered. "Anyways, you want to get going to… whatever it is you want to show me?" Elsa nodded.

"I've informed the guards of where we'll be going. They're going to follow us, but only to keep an eye out for any problems."

"That's fine with me." Elsa grabbed Jaymen's hand and all but dragged her out of the courtyard. Laughing, Jaymen let herself be pulled through the town. Some of the citizens waved at the Queen and said hello. Others just stared at Elsa dragging an unknown female through the village square, but no one said anything.

Once the pair had reached the town borders, Elsa noticed she still was holding on to Jaymen's hand. She immediately let go and lightly blushed. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I kind of just dragged you around in front of the entire kingdom." Jaymen shrugged.

"I don't mind." In fact, Jaymen actually enjoyed the contact with the female, which was strange to her. She normally was very uncomfortable with contact with other people, but it was different with Elsa. The queen's cold hand felt great wrapped up in Jaymen's warm ones. This time she blushed at the thought.

This time Elsa offered her arm to her friend. "Well since I'm the one that knows where we're going, care to join me, my Lady?" Jaymen laughed, but took the queen's arm.

"I would enjoy nothing else, my Queen." Bowing her head slightly. The two women walked arm in arm up the side of the North Mountain. As Jaymen noticed her surroundings, it dawned on her what Elsa wanted to show her; the Ice Castle.

"So, what exactly is it you want's to show me?" Elsa sighed.

"I wanted to show you the ice castle. I'm sure you've probably heard of it, but I wanted to be the one to show it to you." Jaymen felt flattered that Elsa wanted to personally show her the castle.

As the pair reached the steps leading to the castle, Jaymen turned to Elsa. "This is really an amazing piece of work Elsa. I'm very impressed." And the young firestarter meant it. Jaymen was always in awe of Elsa's powers. Despite being a young caster, Elsa had amazing control and capabilities. The blonde only had her powers for 21 years and she had near the same level of control Jaymen took a couple hundred years to get.

The blonde in question blushed at the brunette's praise. "Yeah, I'm proud of it. I never knew what my powers were capable of, until I really let myself feel and use them to their potential. Although I still worry about possibly hurting people, especially Anna and Kristoff." Jaymen nodded.

"Don't worry, it gets easier with time. And you've been through the hardest part, coming to terms with your powers. Many casters take… a much longer time than you to understand and not deny their powers. That's the hardest part, accepting that they are a part of you." Elsa nodded. She understood that much. When she was younger, she always saw her powers as a curse, but more and more she'd been coming to understand that they weren't. They were simply something that made her who she was.

Elsa grabbed Jaymen's hand again, suppressing the urge to blush at the contact, and pulled her up the ice staircase. Reaching the top, Elsa pushed open the large door and entered the large room behind it. In the middle of the room sat another snowman, larger than Olaf and a little more menacing. The two women approached the sleeping snowman. Elsa gently tapped it on the shoulder, "Marshmallow?" The giant snowman opened his eyes and smiled widely. "Mommy!" Grabbing Elsa into a large bear hug, Jaymen tried and failed the suppress a laugh at the expense of her friend.

It was then when Marshmallow noticed the young brunette. He protectively held Elsa and bared his icicle teeth at her. "Who are you? And what you doing here?" Jaymen held up her hands in surrender.

"I'm here with your… mommy?" Marshmallow looked skeptical but looked at Elsa, who quickly nodded.

"She's with me Marshmallow. She's a friend, don't worry." Marshmallow hesitated slightly, but set Elsa down next to Jaymen. She smiled at the giant snowman. "You don't need to be protective of me from her Marshmallow. Trust me, she's a good friend." Jaymen felt flattered at Elsa's words. They two had only known each other for a week or so and already she considered them friends. Too bad she would have to leave soon.

"So, do you want to see the castle?" Elsa snapped Jaymen out of her thoughts. The firestarter nodded in affirmation. Elsa offered her arm to Jaymen, like she had when they were journeying up the mountain. Jaymen giggled and took the queen's arm. The two wandered around the castle, Elsa showing her all of what it had to offer. There wasn't much, but it was still an impressive display of technique and attention to detail. Everything in the castle had its own intricate design made of ice.

Finally, Elsa led Jaymen up to the top of the castle where she had spent a lot of her time while she was in her self imposed exile. Jaymen looked up at the ice fixture hanging from the ceiling. "Beautiful isn't it? Although that's not the original. When Hans came with his men to capture me, it got smashed and I had to recreate it at a later date."

"Does it hurt?" Elsa looked at Jaymen with a quizzical look. "I mean, so much bad stuff happened here, does it hurt to come back? Wait.. that's a really personal question. You don't have to answer that. Forget I said anything." Jaymen rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. Elsa closed her eyes.

"No, I want to answer." Jaymen tried to protest but Elsa cut her off. "It did, for a while. I've been coming up here for a while now, whenever I just need to get away from everything. I may love my kingdom and family, but there are times when I just want to be alone, you know?" Jaymen nodded. She knew the feeling well. "But the more I came back to this place, the less it hurt where it finally got the point that it didn't hurt at all. In fact, I love coming up here, it just gives me time to reflect and be alone."

Jaymen wrapped an arm around Elsa, and the blonde looked at the younger girl. Jaymen just offered a small, sad smile. "Well, I'm glad you decided to show me something so personal to you. It means a lot. I mean I'm basically a stranger to you." Elsa shook her head.

"I meant what I said, I consider you a friend Jaymen. We may not have known each other long, but I usually don't trust people quickly. Not after the incident. But around you, I feel completely at ease, I feel like I can share anything with you." Jaymen blinked and immediately felt guilty. Here she was, concealing half of herself, intending to leave as soon as she was able; and Elsa was sharing some deeply personal things with her. The guilt went straight to her stomach and settled there. She shifted uncomfortably. "You okay? You're not cold are you?" Jaymen laughed.

"No, don't worry about me. I don't get cold."

"Well we're a good pair then aren't we?" Jaymen nodded hesitantly.

"I suppose we are." Elsa reached down to intertwine their hands again and Jaymen blushed at the gesture. She couldn't help but think of how perfectly their hands went together, hot and cold, mixing to create the perfect temperature.

* * *

After Elsa had taken Jaymen to the ice castle, the two spent the weeks following constantly in each other's company. Jaymen often sat in Elsa's study, reading, while the queen worked. Quite often the two would share their lunchtime meals in her study, typically spent talking about all sorts of things. Although Jaymen made sure that they never got close to the topic of the firebird. They had gotten on the topic once, and Jaymen didn't know if she could keep it a secret a second time.

"_So speaking of magic, what do you think about this so called 'Firebird' that apparently has everyone in Arendelle captivated?" Jaymen rubbed her arm nervously. They were straying into dangerous waters if she wanted to keep her secret. _

"_I don't know. The myth sounds fascinating, but I don't know if such a creature exists and if she did, why would she be here of all places?"  
_

"_She?" Jaymen cringed._

"_I mean, I'd assume the bird that's supposed to be that graceful would be female…" Jaymen said lamely. Elsa gave her a skeptical look but didn't question it. _

Jaymen had managed to steer them away from the conversation after that, but she tried not to risk it coming up again. Gods forbid that she makes a more serious slip up than just assuming the bird's gender like it was fact.

Jaymen turned back to her conversation with Kristoff. "Kristoff, I know Elsa and I get along fairly well, but please, you've got to understand. I don't belong here, and I'm not comfortable here. I'm a free spirit, I hate being in one place for too long. I just can't stay here, strike up a friendship with Elsa and then leave out of the blue just because I can't handle commitment for long. It's better this way for everyone. Once I'm gone, all of you will eventually forget about me." Kristoff groaned. He knew that wasn't true. Elsa hadn't forgotten Jaymen in the months between her rescue and her appearance at the castle, injured. But he knew it was futile to try and convince the young woman to stay, so he shut up and nodded grimly.

"Don't give me that look, it's for the best. You guys might not understand now, but you will." Jaymen said to the blonde man.

* * *

**A/N: So sorry I haven't updated anything in like.. weeks. I've been so busy with school, you know finals and all that before summer. And I'm also in the process of looking for a job, so that takes up a lot of time. I just didn't have a lot of time to just sit down a write this out. But I finally got it done! Depending on what job I get for the summer, after school ends I should be able to write more frequently. **

**Anyways, this chapter is pretty much just a transition chapter. I need to move into the next part of the story, but I want to build up at least somewhat of a friendship between Jaymen and Elsa before that point. So this is probably the last chapter of filler and the story will pick back up in the next one. **

**In reply to a review about Mortis meaning death in Latin and therefore my advisor's name meaning death, well… I didn't really think about it. He's such a minor character that I just picked a random name out of thin air, not thinking about the meanings. Oh well, no biggie. **

**Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Not my best I think, but passable. **

**A Charmed Vampire**


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